title: Assessment of red cell distribution width (RDW) in patients with coronary artery ectasia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) is characterized by an abnormal dilatation of the coronary arteries. Red cell distribution width (RDW) is a measure of heterogeneity in the size of red blood cell. In this study, we aimed to investigate RDW levels in patients with CAE.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study population included 54 patients with CAE (28 males; mean age, 59 ± 12) and 40 individuals comprising the control group who had normal coronary arteries (17 males; mean age, 56 ± 10). Admission RDW was measured as part of the automated complete blood count.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The RDW was significantly higher in the CAE group than the control (P < .001). Also, high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels in patients with CAE were significantly higher as compared with controls (P < .001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates that RDW and hs-CRP were higher in the CAE group compared with the control group. These results show that RDW is a reliable, simple, and inexpensive marker for patients with CAE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Erciyes University School of Medicine, Kayseri, Turkey.
authors.forename: Orhan
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Dogdu
authors.forename: Fatih
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Koc
authors.forename: Nihat
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kalay
authors.forename: Mikail
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yarlioglues
authors.forename: Deniz
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Elcik
authors.forename: Metin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Karayakali
authors.forename: Kerem
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ozbek
authors.forename: Mehmet Gungor
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Kaya
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers; D001772:Blood Cell Count; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000097:blood*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004108:Dilatation, Pathologic / Q000097:blood; D004909:Erythrocyte Indices; D005260:Female; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D001786:Blood Glucose; D008055:Lipids; D002097:C-Reactive Protein