Colchicine in ischemic heart disease: the good, the bad and the ugly

Abstract

Inflammation is the main pathophysiological process involved in atherosclerotic plaque formation, progression, instability, and healing during the evolution of coronary artery disease (CAD). The use of colchicine, a drug used for decades in non-ischemic cardiovascular (CV) diseases and/or systemic inflammatory conditions, stimulated new perspectives on its potential application in patients with CAD. Previous mechanistic and preclinical studies revealed anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects of colchicine exerted through its principal mechanism of microtubule polymerization inhibition, however, other pleiotropic effects beneficial to the CV system were observed such as inhibition of platelet aggregation and suppression of endothelial proliferation. In randomized double-blinded clinical trials informing our clinical practice, low doses of colchicine were associated with the significant reduction of cardiovascular events in patients with stable CAD and chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) while in patients with a recent acute coronary syndrome (ACS), early initiation of colchicine treatment significantly reduced major adverse CV events (MACE). On the other hand, the safety profile of colchicine and its potential causal relationship to the observed increase in non-CV deaths warrants further investigation. For these reasons, postulates of precision medicine and patient-tailored approach with regards to benefits and harms of colchicine treatment should be employed at all times due to potential toxicity of colchicine as well as the currently unresolved signal of harm concerning non-CV mortality. The main goal of this review is to provide a balanced, critical, and comprehensive evaluation of currently available evidence with respect to colchicine use in the setting of CAD.

Keywords: Cardiovascular events; Colchicine; Efficacy and safety; Ischemic heart disease; Personalized medicine; Tailored therapy.

Fig. 1

Colchicine mechanism of action—colchicine primarily causes tubulin disruption and prevents microtubule formation, thus resulting in neutrophils inhibition, antinflammatory effects, beneficial cardiovascular effects and inhibiting endothelial cells proliferation. IL interleukin; NLRP3 NLR family pyrin domain containing 3; TNFα tumor necrosis factor alpha; VEGF  vascular endothelial growth factor