Cardiovascular disease is one of the major causes of early morbidity and death in the developed world, and is becoming a serious public health concern in many developing countries. Over the last 30 years, in the USA and France, coronary angioplasty has become a standard treatment for stable angina, and this despite the recommendations of Learned Societies concerning the treatment of this condition. Today, 85 % of angioplasty procedures are performed on patients with stable angina. This study presents meta-analyses that compare medical treatment with angioplasty, and examine the impact of these strategies on more specific populations such as the elderly and post-myocardial infarction patients. To our minds, this synthesis seems to be of particular importance as the COURAGE study has rekindled the debate by showing that improvements in medical treatment and way of life reduced mortality and the recurrence of MI at five years, whereas there was no positive impact of an invasive strategy in any of the subgroups. Nevertheless, as a whole, studies on this subject underscore the value of angioplasty in the medium term for symptom relief in the case of ineffective medical treatment, notably during an acute coronary syndrome both in patients under medical treatment and in those who underwent invasive therapy at the initial phase.