A new study says exercise-induced chest pain may be better managed with medication rather than stents or cardiac bypass surgery, but local cardiologists caution that the results may not apply to many people.

The 9-year study, which recently concluded, focused on patients with ischemic heart disease, which is diagnosed when plaque builds up in the coronary arteries, limiting blood supply to the heart. 

Patients who have ischemic heart disease can experience chest pain or tightness, called angina. When those patients exercise or experience stress, their body attempts to pump more blood but is unable to do so due to the narrowing of the arteries by plaque. Even though the pain goes away when the patient rests, Dr. Steven Hearne, a cardiologist and Medical Director of Peninsula Regional Medical Center’s Guerrieri Heart & Vascular Institute, says a doctor’s appointment should still be scheduled.

Those who conducted the study found enrollment difficult because of the exclusion criteria; participants could not have a weak heart muscle, previous strokes or angioplasties, or chest pain at rest, and they had to have fairly stable exertional symptoms with evidence of blockage on a stress test.

According to Hearne, 25 percent of people enrolled in the study had either bypass or stents while they were in the trial.

“If a patient comes to the hospital with active chest pain, then we know revascularization is better than medicine, and we’ve known that for a long time,” Hearne said. “When you see these studies on TV, you can’t jump to conclusions. You need to talk to your doctor and find out exactly what you’re managing.”

While Hearne agrees with the study, he said it’s difficult to draw a definitive conclusion since most the patients involved were relatively healthy; many high-risk participants had coronary imaging to look at their arteries prior to the study.

“These people have blockages, but they’re living their lives,” he said. “The study focuses on low-risk people. If their heart muscle is normal, certainly if all the criteria were met, sure you can manage it medically. There is no way to push either way.”

For a healthy heart, Hearne urges patients to monitor their blood pressure, stop smoking, lose weight and exercise 30-45 minutes each day.

To learn more about heart disease, visit peninsula.org/heart.