Homocysteine is not a risk factor for subclinical coronary atherosclerosis in asymptomatic individuals

Abstract

BackgroundHomocysteine has been known as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. This study sought to evaluate the influence of homocysteine on the risk of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis in asymptomatic individuals. MethodsWe reviewed 3,186 asymptomatic individuals (mean age 53.8 ± 8.0 years, 2,202 men [69.1%]) with no prior history of coronary artery disease who voluntarily underwent coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) and laboratory tests as part of a general health examination. The subjects were stratified into tertiles according to their homocysteine levels. The degree and extent of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis were assessed by CCTA. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the association between homocysteine levels and subclinical coronary atherosclerosis. ResultsThe prevalence of significant coronary artery stenosis, any atherosclerotic, calcified, mixed, and non-calcified plaques increased with homocysteine tertiles (all p < 0.05). However, after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors, there were no statistically significant differences in the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for any atherosclerotic plaque (OR 1.06; 95% CI [confidence interval] 0.85-1.32; p = 0.610), calcified plaques (OR 1.17; 95% CI 0.92-1.48; p = PLOS ONE PLOS ONE | https://doi. Data Availability Statement:Data cannot be shared publicly because data contain potentially identifying or sensitive patient information. Interested readers can request the data from the 0.199), non-calcified plaques (OR 0.80; 95% CI 0.61-1.04; p = 0.089), and mixed plaques (OR 1.42; 95% CI 0.96-2.11; p = 0.077) between the third and first homocysteine tertiles. In addition, the adjusted OR for significant coronary artery stenosis (OR 0.92; 95% CI 0.63-1.36; p = 0.687) did not differ between the first and third tertiles.

Homocysteine in Neurology: A Possible Contributing Factor to Small Vessel Disease

“…However, after adjusting cardiovascular risk factors, there were no statistically significant differences in the adjusted odds ratios for atherosclerotic plaque and mixed plaques between the third and first homocysteine tertiles. In asymptomatic individuals, homocysteine is not associated with an increased risk of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis [ 318 ]. These results need better and dedicated new works.…”