During the past 10 years it has been shown that some patients with ant
ibodies to phospholipids develop recurrent venous and arterial thrombo
ses, repeated fetal loss, and thrombocytopenia. The aim of this study
is to determine the importance of levels of serum anticardiolipin anti
bodies (ACA) in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). The study
population consisted of 76 CHD patients (Group 1) and 22 healthy subje
cts (Group 2). Group 1 comprised three subgroups: (1a) 32 patients wit
h acute myocardial infarction (MI), (1 b) 22 patients with chronic CHD
and a history of MI, and (1c) 22 patients with CHD but without previo
us MI. Immunoglobulin G anticardiolipin antibodies (IgG ACA) and immun
oglobulin M anticardiolipin antibodies (IgM ACA) were detected by ELIS
A. High IgG ACA levels were found in 36 patients (47%) in Group 1, but
no high levels were found in the control group. IgM ACA levels showed
no significant difference between the two groups. The ACA (IgG and Ig
M) levels showed no correlation with age, gender, risk factor profiles
, platelet counts. coronary artery lesions, left ventricular function,
and morbidity and mortality rates during the follow-up period of 22 m
onths. As a result, measurement of ACA in CHD patients is unlikely to
yield information that is diagnostically or prognostically important.
The importance of serum anticardiolipin antibody levels in the natural
history and prognosis of CHD is still undetermined and remains to be
clarified.