Absence of Association Between Serum Homocysteine Levels and Coronary Artery Disease.

ABSTRACT

Background: High prevalence of premature coronary artery disease is reported in Asian Indians. Traditional risk factors do not explain this excess. Elevated levels of homocysteine are reported to be associated with coronary artery disease amongst Europeans. Present study was carried out with objective to find any possible association between serum homocysteine levels and coronary artery disease Gujarati population of urban Vadodara. Methods: 21 Cases (individuals with coronary artery disease) and 20 controls were studied. Results: The mean homocysteine value amongst the cases was 12.9±2.3 ìmol/L and 12.8±2.4 ìmol/L in controls. There was no significant difference in the homocysteine levels between the groups studied. The prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia, defined as a level of 17.1 μmol/L (the 95th percentile for serum homocysteine in the control group) was not significantly different among the groups. Conclusions: Elevated serum homocysteine levels are not associated with coronary artery disease in male subjects of Vadodara. However, the results must be interpreted with caution because of limited sample size.