title: [Chronic Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in patients with coronary disease. Relation with increased fibrinogen values].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  A number of studies have suggested that infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae can play a role in development of atherosclerosis. The goal of this study was to know the prevalence of chronic C. pneumoniae infection, evaluated with IgG antibodies seropositivity, in Spanish patients with coronary disease and its association with inflammatory markers and cardiovascular risk factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  In 176 patients with coronary disease IgG and IgM antibodies to C. pneumoniae were determined by enzyme immunoassay. In addition, fibrinogen and C-reactive protein values were measured as inflammatory markers. Controls were 55 healthy subjects whose age was not different from patients. Seropositivity for C. pneumoniae was considered when indices of IgG and/or IgM antibodies were higher than mean plus two standard deviations of control values. Three patients with seropositivity for IgM were excluded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 126 patients and 2 controls a seropositivity against C. pneumoniae was proved (72.8% vs 4.2%; p < 0.001). Cardiovascular risk factors were not different in seropositive and seronegative groups of patients. Prevalence of hyperfibrinogenemia was higher in the former group (38.8% vs 19.1%; p = 0.01). The number of the patients with increased values of C-reactive protein was similar in both groups, although these values could be modified by treatment with statins. In multivariate analysis an association between seropositivity for C. pneumoniae and hyperfibrinogenemia was found (odds ratio [OR] = 2.42; 95% confidence interval, 1.07-5.48; p = 0.03) after adjusting for age, gender, smoking, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia and diabetes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Chronic infection with C. pneumoniae in patients with coronary disease is very prevalent, and it is associated with increased fibrinogen values.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Medicina Interna, Unidad de Lípidos y Aterosclerosis, Hospital Universitario 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain. cfmiranda@inicia.es
authors.forename: Consuelo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fernández-Miranda
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Paz
authors.forename: José Luis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Aranda
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fuertes
authors.forename: Agustín
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gómez De La Cámara
mesh_terms: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D016993:Chlamydophila pneumoniae / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D005340:Fibrinogen / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D005340:Fibrinogen; D002097:C-Reactive Protein