Validity of the different classifications of the unstable angina

The classification of the unstable angina syndrome has represented one of t he main objectives of the cardiologists in the two last decades. The ambigu ous definition of this syndrome has led to the phenomenon that numerous cla ssifications have been achieved, based especially in the different clinical presentations of this syndrome, that are neither clearly matched with a di fferent physiopathology nor with the prognosis. On the other hand, the vali dation of the majority of the classifications have been attempted through s tudies of selected populations with an insufficient number of patients in a syndrome with a wide spectrum of clinical presentation, pathophysiology an d prognosis, On this basis, the existing classifications do not fully satis fy the scientific community, wich is confirmed by the periodical appearance of new proposals. In our setting, the classifications which are most applied are those of the Spanish Society of Cardiology:and Braunwald's Classification. Both offer t he usefulness of their simplicity, since they only consider clinical aspect s, but,sustain the previously mentioned inconveniences. A more practical cl assification could possibly be based exclusively on physiopathological or p rognostic characteristics, which allow a more adequate management of these patients.