Thirty-month follow-up of maximal treadmill stress test and double Master's test in normal subjects.

One hundred normal subjects who had a double Master's test and a maximal treadmill stress test (MTST) were clinically evaluated 30 months later. Ninety-nine of these 100 subjects (99%) had a follow-up treadmill test at 30 months. One of four subjects (25%) with initially an abnormal double Master's test developed coronary heart disease within 30 months. Three of 96 subjects (3.1%) with initially a normal double Master's test developed coronary heart disease within 30 months. Three of 13 subjects (23.1%) with initially an abnormal MTST developed coronary heart disease within 30 months. One of 87 subjects (1.1%) with initially a normal MTST developed coronary heart disease within 30 months. The MTST correlated better than the double Master's test in predicting subsequent coronary heart disease.