Long-term treatment with combined oral contraceptives and cigarette smoking associated with impaired activity of tissue plasminogen activator.
The fibrinolytic activity in vein walls (FAV) was determined by a semi-quantitative fibrin slide technique in a group of 68 healthy middle-aged women consisting of 22 healthy controls, 19 non-smoking contraceptive pill users and 27 cigarette-smoking non-users. Significantly decreased FAV was demonstrated in pill users because of high frequency of low values among women using combined oral contraceptives (OC) for more than 5 years. Significantly lower FAV was also recorded in smoking non-users, among whom low FAV values were found mainly in heavy smokers. However, no effect of OC usage for less than 5 years was observed, neither did smoking of less than 10 cigarettes daily influence FAV. Thus, the two well-known risk groups with respect to circulatory diseases, long-term contraceptive users and heavy smokers, included the vast majority of middle-aged women with impaired plasminogen activator activity.
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003277:Contraceptives, Oral, Combined / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D005342:Fibrinolysis / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012907:Smoking; D013997:Time Factors; D010959:Tissue Plasminogen Activator / Q000378:metabolism*
D003277:Contraceptives, Oral, Combined; D010959:Tissue Plasminogen Activator