Late clinical outcomes of unselected patients with diabetic mellitus and multi-vessel coronary artery disease

Background: The Future Revascularization Evaluation in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus: Optimal Management of Multi-Vessel Disease (FREEDOM) clinical trial randomized only a proportion of screened patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and multi-vessel disease (MVD). Methods and results: We determined late rates of death, non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke in all 430 patients with DM who had MVD identified on angiographic screening for the FREEDOM Trial, which recruited from June 2006 –March 2010 at Liverpool Hospital, Sydney, Australia. Mortality at 6 years [median] was 23% among 192 FREEDOM-eligible patients and 26% among 238 FREEDOM-ineligible patients, of whom 139 [58%] had prior. CABG (mortality 31%). Overall, 196 (45%) had percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), 127 (30%) underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) (who were 4 years younger; p = 0.003), and 107 (25%) had neither procedure of whom 80 were considered unsuitable for revascularization. Mortality was 26% post-PCI 16%, post-CABG and 33% among those who did not undergo revascularization (p = 0.01). On multivariable analyses, factors associated with late mortality were older age, hypertension and not undergoing CABG (all p < 0.05). Factors associated with late MI were presented with an acute coronary syndrome, whereas patients that underwent treatment with either PCI or CABG had less late MI (all p < 0.05). Conclusion: Among consecutive diabetic patients with MVD, at a median of 6-years CABG was associated with better survival and fewer non-fatal MI outcomes compared to PCI.