ACC/AHA/ACP-ASIM guidelines for the management of patients with chronic stable angina: executive summary and recommendations. A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines (Committee on Management of Patients with Chronic Stable Angina).

Abstract

### A. Organization of Committee and Evidence Review The American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) Task Force on Practice Guidelines was formed to make recommendations regarding the diagnosis and treatment of patients with known or suspected cardiovascular disease. Ischemic heart disease is the single leading cause of death in the United States. The most common manifestation of this disease is chronic stable angina. Recognizing the importance of the management of this common entity and the absence of national clinical practice guidelines in this area, the task force formed the Committee on Management of Patients With Chronic Stable Angina to develop guidelines for the management of stable angina. Because this problem is frequently encountered in the practice of internal medicine, the task force invited the American College of Physicians–American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP–ASIM) to serve as a partner in this effort by identifying 3 general internists to serve on the committee. The guidelines are arbitrarily divided into 4 sections: diagnosis, risk stratification, treatment, and patient follow-up. Experienced clinicians will quickly recognize that the distinctions between these sections may be arbitrary and unrealistic for individual patients. However, for most clinical decision making, these divisions are helpful and facilitate the presentation and analysis of the available evidence. Detailed evidence was developed whenever possible. The weight of the evidence was ranked highest (A) if the data were derived from multiple randomized clinical trials involving large numbers of patients and intermediate (B) if the data were derived from a limited number of randomized trials involving small numbers of patients or careful analyses of nonrandomized studies or observational regis-tries. A low rank (C) was given when expert consensus was the primary basis for the recommendation. The customary ACC/AHA classifications I, II, and III are used in tables that summarize both the evidence and expert opinion and provide final recommendations for both patient …