[20210A mutation of the prothrombin and venous thromboembolism gene]

Various genetic disorders interact with environmental factors to cause thrombotic diseases. Recently, a G to A transition at nucleotide 20210 in the prothrombin gene, has been described in association with venous thromboembolism, in Dutch population. Currently, several reports want to know the frequence of this mutation in other ethnic groups and populations. The aim of this work was to assess the prevalence rates of prothrombin mutation in both, thrombotic and healthy Spanish populations, and to estimate the associated relative risks. We described the clinical features in our series of thrombotic carriers and moreover, we compared a routine clotting test versus DNA analysis in the diagnosis of this anomaly.

The design was a non-matched case-control study. The involved populations were: 187 patients of venous thromboembolic diseases and 200 healthy controls. Patients and controls were genotyped and both, carriers and non-carrier patients, were analyzed by a routine prothrombin clotting assay, to determine the sensibility and specificity and optimal cut off level of the test.

The 20210 A allele was identified in 17 patients (9.1%) and in 7 controls (3.5%), with a 2.76-fold increased risk (OR 2.76, 95% CI = 1.12-6.81), in carriers. One patient and none of the controls were homozygous. The clinical characteristics (first manifestation age or thrombotic recurrence) are similar in both, carriers and non-carriers, patient groups. The prothrombin level by a routine coagulometric method was 1.31 +/- 0.14 U/ml (95% CI = 1.24-1.38) for the 20210 A carriers, whereas for the non carrier-patients was significantly lower, 1.06 (95% CI = 1.03-1.08) (p < 0.00001). With a cut off level of 1.25 U/ml, 12/16 (75%) carriers and 14/132 (10.6%) non-carriers were positive. Therefore, the sensibility was 75% and the specificity 89.4%. With a cut off level of 1.40 U/ml the diagnostic efficiency was even worse.

3.5% of healthy subjects and 9.1% of thromboembolic patients carried this prothrombin mutation with a relative risk of 2.76 (95% CI = 1.12-6.81). The relevant clinical features are similar to the rest of the series. The mean prothrombin level was higher (1.31 U/ml) than in the normal patients (1.06 U/ml), but the clotting test seems inappropriate for a diagnostic purpose.