Coronary revascularization (surgical or percutaneous) decreases mortality after the first year in diabetic subjects but not in nondiabetic subjects with multivessel disease: an analysis from the Medicine, Angioplasty, or Surgery Study (MASS II).

It is currently unknown whether revascularization procedures are associated with an improvement in mortality among diabetic subjects, as compared with a more conservative medical treatment. In MASS II, a total of 611 patients with stable multivessel coronary disease were randomly assigned to medical treatment, surgery, or angioplasty. From these, 190 patients had diabetes (medical, 75 patients; angioplasty, 56 patients; surgery, 59 patients) and comprised the present study population. Mortality rates were analyzed for the entire 5 years of follow-up. Separate analyzes were also performed for mortality at 2 time intervals: during the first year and after the first year of follow-up. We calculated the probability of death conditional on surviving to the start of the interval analyzed. The cumulative 5-year mortality as well as the mortality during the first year of follow-up was not significantly different among treatment groups, both for diabetic and for nondiabetic subjects. Also, during years 2 to 5, the mortality of the 3 treatment groups was not different for nondiabetic subjects. Among diabetic subjects, however, patients randomized to angioplasty or surgery had a significantly lower mortality between years 2 and 5 than those allocated to medical treatment (P=0.039). Surgery, angioplasty, and medical treatment appear to be associated with similar mortality rates for non-diabetic subjects. For diabetic subjects, however, coronary revascularization (percutaneous or surgical) significantly decreased the risk of death after the first year and up to 5 years, compared with medical treatment alone.