Summary
Impaired fibrinolytic function, mainly due to increased plasma plasminogen activator
inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) activity, is common in patients with manifest coronary artery
disease (CAD) and a predictor of recurrent cardiovascular events. We investigated
the relationships of plasma tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA) and PAI-1 antigen
levels, plasma PAI-1 activity and PAI 4/5-guanosine (4G/5G) genotype to CAD progression
in 203 middle-aged men participating in the Lopid Coronary Angiography Trial (LOCAT).
A higher tPA antigen concentration, whether baseline or on-trial, was associated with
a more severe global angiographic response (p < 0.05), an association mainly accounted
for by progression of diffuse lesions in graft-affected segments (change in per-patient
means of average diameters of segments haemodynamically related to bypass grafts).
Plasma PAI-1 activity and mass concentration and 4G/5G PAI-1 genotype were unrelated
to angiographic outcome measurements. tPA and PAI-1 antigen increased significantly
in the gemfibrozil group (+11.3% and + 16.4%, respectively, p < 0.001), whereas there
was no treatment effect on PAI-1 activity (median change 0.0%).
It is concluded that fibrinolytic function does not substantially influence progression
of CAD as assessed by angiography in middle-aged men. Furthermore, pronounced long-term
lowering of serum triglycerides by gemfibrozil treatment does not significantly affect
the plasma PAI-1 activity level but increases the plasma tPA and PAI-1 antigen concentrations.
Key words
Atherosclerosis - thrombosis - gemfibrozil - coronary artery disease - angiography
- fibrinolysis - lipoproteins