Trial reportHeart (British Cardiac Society)1998
Effects of alpha tocopherol and beta carotene supplements on symptoms, progression, and prognosis of angina pectoris.
Trial report in Heart (British Cardiac Society), 1998. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 74 citations in OpenAlex.
- β-Carotene Supplementation and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Nutrients · 2022Pooled it
- Antioxidant vitamin and mineral supplements for preventing age-related macular degeneration.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017Pooled it
- Effect of antioxidant vitamin supplementation on cardiovascular outcomes: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.PloS one · 2013Pooled it
- Effect of supplemental vitamin E for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.Journal of general internal medicine · 2004Pooled it
- Oxidative stress in vascular surgical diseases: mechanisms, impacts and therapeutic perspectives.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
- The Relationship Between Reactive Oxygen Species and Endothelial Cell Metabolism.Frontiers in chemistry · 2020Review
- Theoretical Study of the Reactivity and Selectivity of Various Free Radicals with Cysteine Residues.ACS omega · 2018Article
- Adverse Effects of Nutraceuticals and Dietary Supplements.Annual review of pharmacology and toxicology · 2018Review
- Vitamins, Are They Safe?Advanced pharmaceutical bulletin · 2016Review
- Tocopherols in the Prevention and Treatment of Atherosclerosis and Related Cardiovascular Disease.Clinical cardiology · 2015Review
- Antioxidant Therapy: Is it your Gateway to Improved Cardiovascular Health?Pharmaceutica analytica acta · 2015Article
- Oxidative stress improves coronary endothelial function through activation of the pro-survival kinase AMPK.Aging · 2013Article
- Microvascular responsiveness in obesity: implications for therapeutic intervention.British journal of pharmacology · 2012Review
- Reactive oxygen species in cardiovascular disease.Free radical biology & medicine · 2011Review
- Coronary heart disease prevention: nutrients, foods, and dietary patterns.Clinica chimica acta; international journal of clinical chemistry · 2011Review
- Tocotrienols: Vitamin E beyond tocopherols.Life sciences · 2006Review
- Antioxidant vitamin supplements: update of their potential benefits and possible risks.Drug safety · 1999Review
- Oxidative stress in cardiovascular disease.Journal of nuclear cardiology : official publication of the American Society of Nuclear CardiologyReview
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo evaluate the effects of alpha tocopherol and beta carotene supplements on recurrence and progression of angina symptoms, and incidence of major coronary events in men with angina pectoris.
designPlacebo controlled clinical trial.
settingThe Finnish alpha tocopherol beta carotene cancer prevention study primarily undertaken to examine the effects of alpha tocopherol and beta carotene on cancer. SUBJECTS: Male smokers aged 50-69 years who had angina pectoris in the Rose chest pain questionnaire at baseline (n = 1795).
interventionsalpha tocopherol (vitamin E) 50 mg/day, beta carotene 20 mg/day or both, or placebo in 2 x 2 factorial design.
main outcome measuresRecurrence of angina pectoris at annual follow up visits when the questionnaire was readministered; progression from mild to severe angina; incidence of major coronary events (non-fatal myocardial infarction and fatal coronary heart disease).
resultsThere were 2513 recurrences of angina pectoris during follow up (median 4 years). Compared to placebo, the odds ratios for recurrence in the active treatment groups were: alpha tocopherol only 1.06 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.85 to 1.33), alpha tocopherol and beta carotene 1.02 (0.82 to 1.27), beta carotene only 1.06 (0.84 to 1.33). There were no significant differences in progression to severe angina among the groups given supplements or placebo. Altogether 314 major coronary events were observed during follow up (median 5.5 years) and the risk for them did not differ significantly among the groups given supplements or placebo.
conclusionsThere was no evidence of beneficial effects for alpha tocopherol or beta carotene supplements in male smokers with angina pectoris, indicating no basis for therapeutic or preventive use of these agents in such patients.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.