An Increased Serum Level of Lipoprotein(a) Is a Predictor for Deep Vein Thrombosis in Patients with Spinal Cord Injuries.

OBJECTIVE: This prospective cohort-designed study was performed to verify whether higher levels of serum lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) could be a risk factor for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in Chinese patients with spinal cord injuries (SCI). METHODS: During 2013-2014, consecutive patients with first-ever SCI were recruited and assessed for DVT using color Doppler ultrasonography for 15 days after injury and whenever clinically requested. Using logistic regression models, multivariate analyses were performed. Receiver operating characteristic curves tested the overall predicted accuracy of Lp(a) and other markers. RESULTS: In this study, 358 patients were screened in the analysis, and 279 patients with SCI were included and completed the 15-day follow-up. Fifty-five patients (19.7%) were diagnosed with DVT. Patients with SCI with DVT had significantly higher Lp(a) levels on admission (554 mg/L [interquartile range, 416-790 mg/L] vs. 158 mg/L [interquartile range, 72-252 mg/L]; P < 0.0001). Adjusted for common risk factors, multivariate analyses showed that serum Lp(a) ≥ 300 mg/L could be used independently to predict DVT (odds ratio, 10.35; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.37-45.35; P < 0.0001). With an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.91 (95% CI, 0.86-0.94), Lp(a) showed a significantly greater discriminatory ability in predicting DVT compared with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (AUC, 0.81; 95% CI, 0.74-0.88; P < 0.01), homocysteine (AUC, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.71-0.84; P < 0.01) and age (AUC, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.59-0.73; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Increased serum Lp(a) levels were independent predictors of DVT in patients with SCI in China, suggesting a possible role of Lp(a) in the pathogenesis of DVT.

Association of CYP2J2 gene polymorphisms with ischemic stroke.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aims to investigate the relationship between CYP2J2 gene polymorphisms and ischemic stroke (IS) in a Chinese Han population. METHODS: We performed a case-control study including 300 stroke patients and 300 healthy control subjects to compare the distribution of genetic polymorphism G-50T in CYP2J2 gene. RESULTS: We found GT genotype of G-50T in CYP2J2 gene was associated with the risk for IS (13.7% vs. 7.7%, P = 0.037). After adjustment of confounders, the difference remains significant (OR = 1.890, 95% CI: 1.042-3.011). CONCLUSION: CYP2J2 gene polymorphism might increase the risk of stroke in Chinese population.

FGB gene - 148C>T polymorphism is associated with increased risk of ischemic stroke in a Chinese population: a meta-analysis based on 18 case-control studies.

BACKGROUND: Several published articles investigated the relationship between a polymorphism -148C>T in the ß-fibrinogen gene (FGB) and risk of ischemic stroke, and did not reach the same conclusion. To shed light on these inconclusive findings, we performed a meta-analysis of studies relating the FGB genetic polymorphism (-148C>T) to the risk of ischemic stroke. METHODS: We identified articles by searching PubMed, EMBASE, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure databases (CNKI), and Wanfang database in China and by reviewing the references of retrieved articles. We included studies that reported odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for the association between the FGB -148C>T polymorphism and stroke risk. Data from eligible studies were extracted for meta-analysis. Stroke risk associated with FGB -148C>T polymorphism was estimated by pooled ORs and 95% CIs. The software Review Manager (version 5.2) was utilized for meta-analysis. Publication bias was tested by funnel plot. RESULTS: Eighteen independent case-control studies containing 2159 ischemic stroke patients and 3222 control subjects were included. Our results showed that -148C>T polymorphism in the FBG gene was associated with increased risk of ischemic stroke ([TT+CT] vs. CC: OR=1.40, 95% CI [1.20-1.45], p<0.0001; T vs. C: OR=1.35, 95% CI [1.18-1.56], p<0.0001, respectively] by a meta-analysis. CONCLUSION: The results of our meta-analysis suggested that the-148C>T polymorphism in the FGB gene is a susceptibility marker of ischemic stroke.

Associations of genetic polymorphisms of SAA1 with cerebral infarction.

BACKGROUND: Serum amyloid A protein (SAA) is both an inflammatory factor and an apolipoprotein. However, the relation between genetic polymorphisms of SAA and cerebral infarction (CI) remains unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: The previously reported 4 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (rs12218, rs4638289, rs7131332, and rs11603089) of SAA1 gene were genotyped by TaqMan method in a case-control study including 287 cerebral infarction patients and 376 control subjects. We found rs12218 CC genotype and rs7131332 AA genotype were more frequent among CI patients than among controls (9.76% versus 3.19%, P = 0.001; 32.75% versus 24.20%; p = 0.017; respectively). After adjustment of confounding factors such as sex, age, smoking, drinking, hypertension, diabetes, and lipids profile, the difference remained significant in rs12218 (P < 0.01, OR = 2.106, 95% CI: 1.811-7.121). CONCLUSION: Genetic polymorphism of SAA1 may be a genetic maker of cerebral infarction in Chinese.