Gap in gender parity: gender disparities in incidence and clinical impact of chronic total occlusion in non-infarct artery in patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and multivessel coronary artery disease

A chronic total occlusion in a non-infarct-related artery is an independent predictor of mortality in non-ST elevation myocardial infarction. There are no mortality data about the impact of a chronic total occlusion in patients with non-ST elevation myocardial infarction according to gender. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of the chronic total occlusion in in men and women and examine its impact on clinical outcomes. Data from consecutive patients with multivessel coronary artery disease treated in a high-volume center between 2006 and 2012 were included in a prospective registry and divided according to gender and the presence of chronic total occlusion. All of the analyzed patients were followed up for at least 24 months, with all-cause mortality defined as the primary endpoint. Among the 515 patients who fulfilled the inclusion criteria, 32.8% were female. In the female arm, the 24-month mortality for the groups with and without chronic total occlusion was similar (18.9% and 14.7%, respectively; p = 0.47). In contrast, in the male arm, the occurrence of chronic total occlusion was associated with higher 24-month mortality (24.3% vs. 13.4%; p = 0.009). Multivariate analysis of the male arm revealed a trend toward a positive association between the occurrence of chronic total occlusion and 24-month mortality (HR 1.62; 95% CI 0.93–2.83; p = 0.087). The presence of chronic total occlusion in men is associated with an adverse long-term prognosis, whereas in women this effect was not observed.