Triglyceride glucose index is associated with myocardial ischemia in patients with minimal to moderate CAD

Background The triglyceride glucose (TyG) index has been suggested as a reliable substitute indicator of insulin resistance. However, the association between the TyG index and the prevalence of myocardial ischemia in patients with minimal to moderate CAD is still lacking. Hypothesis: We aimed to investigate the association between the triglyceride glucose (TyG) index and the incidence of myocardial ischemia in patients with minimal to moderate coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods 1697 patients underwent coronary CTA examinations and with minimal to moderate CAD were retrospectively included in the study. TyG index and computed tomography–derived fractional flow reserve (CT-FFR) was used to assess insulin resistance (IR) and myocardial ischemia, respectively. Myocardial ischemia was defined as a CT-FFR value ≤ 0.80. Logistic regression models were performed to explore the association between the TyG index and myocardial ischemia. A 1-SD increase in TyG index was correlated with 19–24% elevated risk of myocardial ischemia when regarding TyG as a continuous variable. Results The prevalence of myocardial ischemia was higher in the highest TyG index tertile (T3) group than that in the lowest TyG index tertile (T1) group. After adjusting for other variables, the T3 group remained to be associated with a higher risk of myocardial ischemia when regarded the T1 group as the reference (OR, 1.43, 95% CI, 1.01–2.04, p  = 0.047). Subgroups analysis showed the similar effects. Conclusion The TyG index was associated with the prevalence of myocardial ischemia detected by CT-FFR in patients with minimal to moderate CAD.