Comparison of Triglyceride-Glucose (TyG) Index in Patients with Ischemic Heart Disease with and Without Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease

Abstract

Background: The triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index is a readily available indicator of insulin resistance and may be related to the severity of coronary artery disease. This study compared the TyG index in patients with ischemic heart disease with and without multivessel coronary artery disease (MV-CAD).

Methods: A comparative analytical cross-sectional study was carried out on 208 patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD) who were undergoing coronary angiography. Participants were divided equally into MV-CAD group and non-MV-CAD group. Demographic, clinical and biochemical parameters were recorded and the TyG index was obtained from the fasting levels of triglycerides and glucose. Comparisons between groups, logistic regression, and ROC analysis were conducted.

Results: The mean TyG index was significantly higher in patients with MV-CAD compared with those without MV-CAD (p<0.001). There were also differences in fasting glucose and triglyceride levels, and in HDL-C levels, between the MV-CAD group and the non-MV-CAD group. TyG was independently related to MV-CAD after multivariable adjustment (p<0.001). The ROC analysis resulted in an AUC of 0.733 and a cut-off value of 8.91 with a sensitivity of 72.1% and specificity of 65.4%.

Conclusions: Higher TyG was independently associated with MV-CAD and had moderate discriminatory capability, suggesting that it could be a low-cost, supplementary marker of coronary disease burden.