Fibrinogen is associated with silent myocardial ischaemia in type 2 diabetes mellitus

Because traditional risk factors only partially explain coronary events, it is necessary to search for new ones like fibrinogen which has been related with coronary disease in healthy middle-aged adults. We attempted to determine the impact of fibrinogen on silent myocardial ischaemia (SMI) in diabetic patients.

In a cross-sectional study, 134 type 2 diabetes patients with no history of cardiovascular disease were assessed for SMI. A personal history and physical evaluation of each patient was conducted as well as evaluation of cholesterol, glucose, fibrinogen, blood cell counts, glycated haemoglobin, urine albumin quantification, and urinalysis. A modified Bruce test was performed on all study participants to evaluate the presence of SMI.

Eleven patients had SMI (8.2%) that was associated with systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure, hypertension, and fibrinogen. The correlation coefficient was obtained for quintiles of fibrinogen with the percentage of patients with SMI in that quintile (r = 0.97; 95% = 0.66-0.99). Fibrinogen levels were associated with SMI. A receiver-operator curve analysis showed that the cutoff value for fibrinogen to predict SMI was 400 mg/dL (82% sensitivity, 81% specificity). A cutoff value of 306 mg/dL of fibrinogen would rule in the diagnosis of SMI (100% sensitivity, 17% specificity), while fibrinogen cutoff of 682 mg/dL would rule out SMI (100% specificity, 9% sensitivity).

Fibrinogen strongly predicts SMI in diabetic patients and may identify individuals with high cardiovascular risk. Fibrinogen should be evaluated in diabetic patients for a more accurate cardiovascular evaluation.