Ischemic heart disease among subjects with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – ECG-findings in a population-based cohort study

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular comorbidity in COPD is common and contributes to increased mortality. A few population-based studies indicate that ischemic electrocardiogram (ECG)-changes are more prevalent in COPD, while others do not. The aim of the present study was to estimate the presence of ischemic heart disease (IHD) in a population-based COPD-cohort in comparison with subjects without COPD. METHODS: All subjects with obstructive lung function (COPD, n = 993) were identified together with age- and sex-matched controls (non-COPD, n = 993) from population-based cohorts examined in 2002–04. In 2005, data from structured interview, spirometry and ECG were collected from 1625 subjects. COPD was classified into GOLD 1–4 after post-bronchodilator spirometry. Ischemic ECG-changes, based on Minnesota-coding, were classified according to the Whitehall criteria into probable and possible IHD. RESULTS: Self-reported IHD was equally common in COPD and non-COPD, and so were probable and possible ischemic ECG-changes according to Whitehall. After excluding subjects with restrictive spirometric pattern from the non-COPD-group, similar comparison with regard to presence of IHD performed between those with COPD and those with normal lung-function did neither show any differences. There was a significant association between self-reported IHD (p = 0.007) as well as probable ischemic ECG-changes (p = 0.042), and increasing GOLD stage. In COPD there was a significant association between level of FEV(1) percent of predicted and self-reported as well as probable ischemic ECG-changes, and this association persisted for self-reported IHD also after adjustment for sex and age. CONCLUSION: In this population-based study, self-reported IHD and probable ischemic ECG-changes were associated with COPD disease severity assessed by spirometry. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12890-015-0149-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.