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Coronary Progenitor Cells and Soluble Biomarkers in Cardiovascular Prognosis after Coronary Angioplasty
Published on: January 28, 2020
Inflammatory markers, angiographic severity of coronary artery disease, and patient outcome
Rishi Sukhija1, Ibrahim Fahdi, Luis Garza
1Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, and University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.
Insights
Inflammatory markers like hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha did not predict coronary artery disease severity or major adverse cardiac events in patients with chest pain. Traditional risk factors were more strongly associated with disease burden.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Inflammation Research
- Biomarker Analysis
Background:
- Elevated inflammatory markers, including high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), are implicated in coronary artery disease (CAD) pathogenesis.
- Previous studies suggest these markers may predict adverse cardiovascular outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the predictive value of serum hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha levels for atherosclerotic burden and major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) in patients presenting with acute chest pain.
- To determine if inflammatory markers offer additional prognostic information beyond traditional CAD risk factors.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study of 249 patients admitted with acute chest pain undergoing coronary angiography.
- Serum levels of hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha were measured.
- Angiographic severity of CAD was assessed, and MACEs (myocardial infarction, all-cause death, revascularization) were recorded at 6-month follow-up.
Main Results:
- No significant association was found between hs-CRP, IL-6, or TNF-alpha levels and the angiographic severity of CAD after adjusting for traditional risk factors.
- Age, male gender, diabetes mellitus, and hypercholesterolemia showed a significant positive correlation with atherosclerotic burden.
- Serum inflammatory marker levels were not significantly associated with MACEs at 6 months in either unadjusted or adjusted models.
Conclusions:
- In patients hospitalized with acute chest pain, serum levels of hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha do not appear to be associated with coronary atherosclerotic burden.
- These inflammatory markers did not predict major adverse cardiac events at 6 months in this cohort, even after accounting for conventional CAD risk factors.
Abstract:
Serum levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) have been shown to be predictors of adverse outcomes in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). We hypothesized that measurement of inflammatory markers could predict atherosclerotic burden and major adverse cardiac events (MACEs). We prospectively measured hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha in 249 patients who were admitted with acute chest pain and underwent coronary angiography. We analyzed the relation between serum levels of inflammatory markers and angiographic severity of CAD. A follow-up at 6 months was conducted to assess MACEs, defined as a cumulative of myocardial infarction, all-cause death, or coronary revascularization (percutaneous coronary intervention or coronary artery bypass surgery). After adjusting for conventional CAD risk factors (age, gender, diabetes, hypertension, smoking, and hypercholesterolemia), there was no association between inflammatory markers (hs-CRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha) and angiographic severity of CAD. There was a significant positive correlation between age, male gender, diabetes mellitus, and hypercholesterolemia with atherosclerotic burden determined by angiography. There was no significant positive association between MACEs and hs-CRP, IL-6, or TNF-alpha level in unadjusted and adjusted models. In conclusion, in patients hospitalized with chest pain, we found no association of serum levels of hs-CRP, IL-6, or TNF-alpha with coronary atherosclerotic burden or MACEs at 6 months after adjustment for traditional CAD risk factors.
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