Associations between plasma fibrinogen levels and cardiovascular risk factors in hypertensive men.
BACKGROUND
Fibrinogen levels are reported to be elevated in hypertensive patients and tend to cluster with nearly all other established cardiovascular risk factors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between plasma fibrinogen and a number of other cardiovascular risk factors in patients with essential hypertension.


METHODS
We studied 118 men with essential hypertension, aged 18-65 years. The clinical evaluation included measurements of blood pressure (mercury sphygmomanometer, Korotkoff I and V), levels of plasma fibrinogen, total cholesterol, high-density-lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides and blood glucose and the ratio of total-cholesterol to HDL-cholesterol levels; a detailed history of medical and personal habits was also recorded.


RESULTS
As expected, plasma fibrinogen levels were significantly higher in smokers than in non-smokers, with the number of cigarettes smoked correlating positively with the fibrinogen level. Patients with a total-cholesterol level in excess of 220 mg/dl had significantly higher fibrinogen levels, and both univariate and multivariate analyses showed total-cholesterol and fibrinogen levels to be positively correlated. A weaker but significant relationship was noted between the fibrinogen level and triglyceride levels (P = 0.0017) and between the fibrinogen level and the ratio of total-cholesterol to HDL-cholesterol levels (P = 0.0006). Fibrinogen levels were not significantly associated with either systolic or diastolic blood pressures.


CONCLUSIONS
A family history of hypertension appears to potentiate the tendency of fibrinogen to cluster with other cardiovascular risk factors in hypertensive patients.
Fogari
R
R
Department of Internal Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Pavia, Italy.
Zoppi
A
A
Marasi
G
G
Vanasia
A
A
Villa
G
G
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005340:Fibrinogen / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000097:blood; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood
D001786:Blood Glucose; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D014280:Triglycerides; D005340:Fibrinogen; D002784:Cholesterol