Independent Association of High Serum Uric Acid Concentration with Angiographically Defined Coronary Artery Disease

Independent Association of High Serum Uric Acid Concentration with Angiographically Defined Coronary Artery Disease

ZORANA JELIC-IVANOVIC,¹ LIDIJA MEMON,² VESNA SPASOJEVIC-KALIMANOVSKA,¹ NATAŠA BOGAVAC-STANOJEVIC¹ and SLAVICA SPASIC¹

¹Institute of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Belgrade, Serbia
²Clinical Chemistry Laboratory, Clinical Centre “Bezanijska kosa”, Belgrade, Serbia

Epidemiological studies have shown that a high serum uric acid concentration is a risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD). However, the issue of whether it is an independent cardiovascular risk factor or simply a marker of co-existing conditions is a matter of controversy. In the present case-controlled study, we explored the association between serum uric acid and angiographically defined CAD in middle-aged subjects (356 CAD patients and 350 healthy individuals). Serum uric acid in CAD patients was significantly higher than that in healthy individuals (359 ± 88.7 and 289 ± 79.3 μmol/l, respectively, p < 0.01) and remained significantly higher after adjusting for confounding factors (F = 79.77, p < 0.01). The association between uric acid and CAD was not limited to the hyperuricemic range of values, but was also found in the high-normal range (p < 0.01). An unadjusted odds ratio (OR) of 5.0 was obtained in both genders (p < 0.01). Female patients with > 50% stenosis (clinically significant CAD), regardless of the number of diseased vessels, had higher uric acid concentrations than those with < 50% stenosis even after adjusting for confounders (F = 3.79, p = 0.01). In conclusion, we have demonstrated that high serum uric acid is independently associated with CAD and that uric acid determination could be useful as one of the markers of clinically significant CAD.

keywords —— angiography; atherosclerosis; coronary heart disease; risk factors; uric acid.

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Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2007, 211, 369-377

Correspondence: Zorana Jelic-Ivanovic, Institute of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, POB 146, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.

e-mail: zjelic@afrodita.rcub.bg.ac.yu