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Homocysteine and major coronary events: a prospective population study amongst women

P Knekt1, G Alfthan, A Aromaa

  • 1Department of Nutrition and Department of Health and Disability, National Public Health Institute, Helsinki, Finland. paul.knekt@ktl.fi

Journal of Internal Medicine
|May 15, 2001
PubMed

Insights

Elevated serum homocysteine levels predict major coronary heart disease events in women with pre-existing heart disease. This finding highlights homocysteine as a significant risk factor for cardiovascular events in this population.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Biochemistry
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • High homocysteine levels are implicated in cardiovascular disease.
  • Understanding homocysteine's role in women's heart disease is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate serum homocysteine as a predictor of major coronary heart disease events in women.
  • To assess the association between homocysteine concentrations and cardiovascular outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • A case-control study nested within a 13-year follow-up study.
  • Included women with and without known heart disease, matched with controls.
  • Major coronary events (death or myocardial infarction) were the primary outcome measure.

Main Results:

  • Among women with baseline heart disease, the highest homocysteine quintile showed a 3.32-fold increased risk of coronary events (95% CI, 1.05-10.5) compared to the lowest.
  • In women without baseline heart disease, the relative risk was 0.77 (95% CI, 0.24-2.45), indicating no significant association.

Conclusions:

  • The study supports homocysteine as a risk factor for coronary events in women with established heart disease.
  • Homocysteine may be a valuable biomarker for predicting cardiovascular events in at-risk women.
Abstract

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