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Routine Versus As-Needed Stress Testing in Asymptomatic Patients With High-Risk Coronary Calcium

SMart Angioplasty Research Team-Pragmatic Randomized Trial for Comparing Routine Versus As-Needed EXercise or Pharmacologic Stress Testing in Asymptomatic Patients With High-Risk Coronary CalciuM (SMART-EXAM)

Status
Recruiting
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT05796739
Acronym
SMART-EXAM
Enrollment
3000
Registered
2023-04-03
Start date
2023-07-03
Completion date
2029-12-31
Last updated
2025-01-14

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Coronary Atherosclerosis Due to Calcified Coronary Lesion

Keywords

Non-invasive stress test, Coronary calcification, Agatston score

Brief summary

The purpose of the SMART-EXAM (SMart Angioplasty Research Team-Pragmatic Randomized Trial for Comparing Routine versus As-Needed EXercise or Pharmacologic Stress Testing in Asymptomatic Patients with High-Risk Coronary CalciuM) trial is to compare the major adverse cardiovascular events between routine stress testing and as-needed stress testing in asymptomatic patients with high-risk coronary calcium (Agatston Score ≥ 400) without proven ASCVD.

Detailed description

The coronary artery calcium (CAC) scan, a marker of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis, has become popular for individuals at risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. CAC is strongly associated with atherosclerotic burden and predicts coronary heart disease events and mortality, regardless of their age, sex, race, or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk. Furthermore, the progression of CAC is associated with an increased risk for future hard and total coronary heart disease events. The use of CAC scoring was associated with significant improvements in the reclassification and discrimination of incident ASCVD. Nevertheless, the current guidelines recommend CAC measurement for selected cases only with borderline or intermediate risk of ASCVD. However, in real-world practice, CAC testing is increasingly being promoted to the public as a means of self-assessment of cardiovascular risk and is widely being used regardless of ASCVD risk. Non-invasive stress testing is often recommended to exclude potentially dangerous coronary artery disease. However, stress testing in asymptomatic individuals has low sensitivity and specificity.9 Although the 2019 Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease Guidelines do not comment on functional or invasive testing in asymptomatic individuals with a high CAC score, the 2009 Appropriate Use Criteria for Cardiac Radionuclide Imaging report gives a level A recommendation for obtaining a stress test in asymptomatic individuals with CAC score ≥400.10 In addition, the 2013 update of the 2009 document also considers stress imaging appropriate for patients with CAC score \>100. However, there have been no large randomized controlled trials or observational studies that have evaluated the utility of functional or invasive testing in asymptomatic individuals free of ASCVD with high CAC scores. Theoretically, early detection and revascularization of ischemia producing lesions in asymptomatic patients with high-risk coronary calcification without proven ASCVD might reduce the future risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.

Interventions

DIAGNOSTIC_TESTNon-invasive stress test

Nuclear imaging, stress echocardiography, exercise electrocardiography, stress cardiac magnetic resonance imaging

DIAGNOSTIC_TESTMedical treatment without further testing

Optimal medical treatment for primary prevention.

Sponsors

Samsung Medical Center
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
DIAGNOSTIC
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
19 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Subject must be at least 19 years of age. ② Asymptomatic patients with high-risk coronary calcium (Agatston Score ≥ 400)

Exclusion criteria

* Documentation of objective evidence of inducible ischemia before enrollment * Presence of significant coronary artery stenosis (≥ 70% diameter stenosis) confirmed by coronary angiography or coronary computed tomography angiography before enrollment * History of coronary revascularization procedure ④ Pregnancy or breast feeding ⑤ Non-cardiac co-morbid conditions are present with life expectancy \<1 year or that may result in protocol non-compliance (per site investigator's medical judgment) ⑥ Unwillingness or inability to comply with the procedures described in this protocol.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular eventsup to 4.5 years of median follow-upa composite of death from cardiovascular causes, myocardial infarction, unplanned hospitalization leading to an urgent revascularization procedure, or heart failure hospitalization

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
myocardial infarctionup to 4.5 years of median follow-upmyocardial infarction
unplanned hospitalization leading to an urgent revascularization procedureup to 4.5 years of median follow-upunplanned hospitalization leading to an urgent revascularization procedure
heart failure hospitalizationup to 4.5 years of median follow-upheart failure hospitalization
all-cause deathup to 4.5 years of median follow-updeath from any causes
a composite of death from cardiovascular cause or myocardial infarctionup to 4.5 years of median follow-upa composite of death from cardiovascular cause or myocardial infarction
cardiovascular deathup to 4.5 years of median follow-updeath from cardiovascular causes
performing revascularization procedureup to 4.5 years of median follow-upperforming revascularization procedure
performing invasive coronary angiography procedureup to 4.5 years of median follow-upperforming invasive coronary angiography procedure
strokeup to 4.5 years of median follow-upstroke
bleedingup to 4.5 years of median follow-upBleeding Academic Research Consortium type 2-5
total medical costup to 4.5 years of median follow-uptotal medical cost
any hospitalizationup to 4.5 years of median follow-upany hospitalization

Countries

South Korea

Contacts

Primary ContactSeung-Hyuk Choi, MD
sh1214.choi@samsung.com82-2-3410-3419
Backup ContactKi Hong Choi
cardiokh@gmail.com82-2-3410-6653

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026