We aimed to examine whether prognostic nutritional index (PNI) could serve as an auxiliary predictor for major cardiovascular events (MCEs) in patients undergoing invasive coronary angiography (ICA). A total of 485 participants were enrolled, divided into low-PNI (≥47.40) and high-PNI (<47.40) groups. ICA determined the stenotic vessels of coronary artery disease. The primary outcome was incidental MCEs, a composite of all-cause death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke, or rehospitalization of in-stent restenosis. There were 47 (9.69%) MCEs during the 3.78-years follow-up. The cumulative incidence of MCEs was significantly higher in the low-PNI patients compared with the high-PNI patients (17.07% vs. 7.18%, p = 0.001). Malnutrition risk (low PNI) was significantly and independently associated with a higher risk of MCEs (hazard ratios: 2.593, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 1.418−4.742). Combined use of the number of stenotic vessels with malnutrition risk showed a higher capacity to predict the MCEs than the presence of stenotic vessels alone (areas under the receiver operator characteristic curve: 0.696 [95% CI, 0.618−0.775] vs. 0.550 [95% CI, 0.466−0.633], p = 0.013). In conclusion, lower PNI levels may predict a higher risk of cardiovascular events in patients undergoing ICA, which supports the necessity of the risk assessment of nutrition status and guide the clinical treatment on strengthening nutritional support before ICA is performed, as well as nutritional intervention after ICA.
Keywords: invasive coronary angiography; major cardiovascular events; malnutrition; prognostic nutritional index.