Long-term prognosis of patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction according to coronary arteries atherosclerosis extent on coronary angiography: a historical cohort study

Abstract Background Patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) without obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) are often managed differently than those with obstructive CAD, therefore we aimed in this study to examine the long-term prognosis of patients with NSTEMI according to the degree of CAD on coronary angiography (CAG). Methods We examined 8.889 consecutive patients admitted for first time NSTEMI during 2000–2011, to whom CAG was performed. Patients were classified by CAG into: 0-vessel disease (0VD), diffuse atherosclerosis (DA) (0%