Effects of mitochondrial ATP-sensitive potassium channel activation (nicorandil) in patients with angina pectoris undergoing elective percutaneous coronary interventions: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

AIMS: Nicorandil, which is a mitochondrial ATP-sensitive potassium channel opener, is believed to improve perioperative myocardial injury (PMI) in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), but recent studies have shown that nicorandil treatment did not improve functional and clinical outcomes in patients with angina pectoris who underwent elective PCI. We performed a meta-analysis to investigate the protective effect of nicorandil on perioperative injury in patients with angina pectoris who underwent elective PCI. METHODS: The Medline, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases were searched for randomized clinical trials examining the effects of nicorandil. Two investigators independently selected suitable trials, extracted data, and assessed trial quality. RESULTS: Seven studies of patients undergoing elective PCI, comprising a total of 979 patients, were included in this review. The results showed that nicorandil did not reduce the levels of markers of myocardial injury (standardized mean difference [SMD] 0.31 [95%CI −0.6, 1.22] for creatine kinase-MB [CK-MB] and 1.29 [95%CI −2.18, 4.76] for troponin I [TNI]), perioperative complications (relative risk [RR] 0.91 [95%CI 0.46–1.81]), target vessel revascularization (RR 0.79 [95%CI 0.50–1.25]) or major adverse cardiac events (MACE) (RR 0.83 [95%CI 0.49–1.43]). Nicorandil did reduce the corrected TIMI frame count (SMD-0.30 [95%CI −0.52, −0.09]). CONCLUSION: Although nicorandil did not reduce the overall incidence of perioperative complications and the incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) in patients with angina pectoris who underwent elective PCI, it could still improve no reflow and slow coronary flow.