ERYTHROCYTE AGGREGABILITY IN PATIENTS WITH CORONARY HEART-DISEASE

Erythrocyte aggregation (EA) rates were measured at stasis (M) and at 3 sec(-1) (M1) in four groups: healthy controls (HC) and three groups of coronary heart disease (CHD); stable angina pectoris (SAP), unstabl e angina pectoris (USAP) and post myocardial infarction (PostMI) patie nts. All CHD patients had similar risk factors. EA values were signifi cantly higher at M and M1 in USAP and PostMI groups than HC and SAP (p <0.0001). These values were also higher in men than women in premenopa use (p<0.001) in HC group, but after menopause the differences were no t significant (p>0.05). Since EA is higher in more severe forms of CHD (USAP and PostMI) and atherosclerosis is more common in men than wome n before menopause, it is possible that EA might play a role in the de velopment of especially severe forms of CHD.