Background: Persistent angina is prevalent in women, who more often present with atypical angina, and experience less relief from antianginal therapies. The impact of ranolazine on female-specific angina is unclear. A single-arm, open-label trial was conducted to quantify the impact of ranolazine on angina in women with ischemic heart disease (IHD). Materials and Methods: Women with IHD and ≥2 angina episodes/week were recruited from 30 U.S. sites. Angina and nitroglycerin (NTG) consumption were assessed using patient-reported diaries, Seattle Angina Questionnaire (SAQ), Duke Activity Score Index (DASI), and Women's Ischemia Symptom Questionnaire (WISQ) at baseline and at 4 weeks of treatment with ranolazine 500 mg twice/day. A modified intent-to-treat analysis and parametric or nonparametric methods were used as appropriate to analyze changes. Results: Of 171 women enrolled, mean age was 65 ± 12 years. Of the 159 women included in the analysis, at week 4 compared to baseline, median angina frequency decreased with ranolazine treatment from 5.0 to 1.5 attacks/week and median change from baseline was -3.3 (95% confidence interval [CI]: -4.0 to -2.5; p ≤ 0.0001). Median NTG consumption decreased from 2.0 to 0.0 per week over the 4 weeks and median change was -1.0 (95% CI: -2.0 to -0.5; p < 0.0001). All five SAQ subscales showed mean improvements: physical limitation 9.2 (standard error [SE] 1.5; p < 0.0001), angina stability 31.8 (SE 2.7; p < 0.0001), angina frequency 17.7 (SE 1.6; p < 0.0001), treatment satisfaction 9.3 (SE 1.6; p < 0.0001), and disease perception 2.9 (SE 0.8; p < 0.0001). DASI score also improved 2.9 (SE 0.8; p = 0.0014). WISQ subscales also showed significant improvements (all p < 0.0001). Thirty-one women reported drug-related adverse events (AEs), predominantly mild to moderate gastrointestinal symptoms. Conclusions: Women with IHD treated with ranolazine for 4 weeks experienced less angina measured by SAQ and WISQ. NTG use decreased, physical activity improved, and treatment satisfaction improved. AEs were consistent with prior reports.
Keywords: and heart disease; angina; ranolazine; women.