Triglyceride-glucose index: A prognostic tool for predicting outcomes in elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome
Key Takeaways
This study found that triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index is a predictor of long-term all-cause mortality as well as major adverse cardiac events (MACE) in elderly acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients.
Future studies are needed to elucidate the mechanism by which the TyG index is related to poor ACS outcomes.
Previous work has established a link between the TyG index and coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors, such as hypertension and diabetes.
Why This Study Matters
While the TyG index has been recently identified as a prognostic predictor in patients with CHD and in-stent restenosis, studies on the predictive value of the TyG index on the prognosis of ACS patients have been lacking, especially among the elderly population. To address this need, this study sought to determine if the TyG index can be utilized to predict long-term outcomes in elderly ACS patients.
Study Design
The study enrolled 662 patients, aged 80 years and above, who were hospitalized for coronary angiography due to the presence of ACS symptoms from January 2006 to December 2012. Patients were divided into three groups based on their TyG index. The TyG index was 8.08 ± 0.61, 8.72 ± 0.15, and 9.47 ± 0.4 in tertile 1, tertile 2, and tertile 3, respectively.
Follow-up visits were conducted every 12 months after discharge, with a median follow-up period of 63 months. The primary endpoint of the study was the occurrence of a MACE, which included the following events: non-fatal acute myocardial infarction, coronary artery revascularization (PCI or CABG), and all-cause mortality.
Results and Conclusions
Researchers observed a positive correlation between the TyG index and the severity of coronary artery stenosis, as determined by the Gensini score, and a negative correlation between the TyG index and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol.
An increase in the TyG index was associated with an increase in all-cause mortality and incidence of MACE. In the group with the highest TyG index, the hazard ratio was 1.64 for all-cause mortality and 1.36 for MACE for each SD increase in the TyG index.
Investigators observed a significant increase in the risk of all-cause mortality from TyG index tertile 1 to tertile 3.
Related Research
Consider these findings from similar research studies:
TyG index is linked to arterial stiffness in older adults (Source).
Increased TyG index is a predictor of coronary artery calcification progression (Source).
Original Source
Jiao Y, Su Y, Shen J, et al. Evaluation of the long-term prognostic ability of triglyceride-glucose index for elderly acute coronary syndrome patients: a cohort study. Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2022;21(1):3.