Effect of weight loss on coagulation factors VII and X

Coagulation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease. Therefore, reversing a tendency to thrombosis may be an avenue for its prevention. Because of an association between obesity and high levels of several coagulation factors, the effect of weight loss on coagulation factors VII and X was investigated among subjects taking part in a 3-month weight loss study. At baseline, both coagulation factors were correlated with age, Quetelet's index, total cholesterol and triglycerides. During the diet period, the subjects lost an average of 3.5 kg at 1 month and 4.2 kg at 3 months, whereas lipoproteins changed in only minor ways. In the group as a whole, factor VII and X both decreased at 1 month but returned to or exceeded the baseline levels despite continued weight loss at 3 months. Although changes in weight, serum total cholesterol and triglycerides were correlated with the changes in the factors during the first month, during months 2 and 3 these correlations remained substantial only for triglycerides. Multiple regression analysis indicated that changes in weight, cholesterol and triglycerides could not explain the decreasing and increasing pattern in factors VII and X. These data suggest that weight itself does not explain the association between obesity and factors VII and X, and that weight loss does not effectively decrease the levels of these factors.