FIBRINOGEN, D-DIMER AND THROMBIN-ANTITHROMBIN COMPLEXES IN A RANDOM-POPULATION SAMPLE - RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER CARDIOVASCULAR RISK-FACTORS

Fibrinogen is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease an d both D-Dimer and Thrombin-Antithrombin complexes may be suitable as laboratory markers of deep venous thrombosis and are becoming more wid espread in clinical practice. The aim of our study was to evaluate the ir normal range and to examine their correlation with various cardiova scular risk factors. Fibrinogen, D-Dimer and Thrombin-Antithrombin com plexes were assessed in 516 normal subjects randomly selected from the National Health Service register of Trieste (Italy). In our community the mean value of fibrinogen was 283 +/- 71 mg/dl. Fibrinogen increas es with age in males and was significantly higher in male smokers. In non-smokers, females had significantly higher fibrinogen values than m ales. The mean value of D-Dimer was 306 +/- 130 ng/ml. In females it i s significantly higher. The fibrinogen and D-Dimer correlation coeffic ient was 0.20 (p < 0.001). The mean level of Thrombin-Antithrombin com plexes was 6.25 +/- 6.8 ng/ml with a distribution markedly skewed towa rds the left; males had lower concentration than females (p = 0.047). Multiple regression analysis for fibrinogen as a dependent variable sh owed that D-Dimer, LDL-cholesterol, Body-Mass Index and Thrombin-Antit hrombin complexes were poor predictors for fibrinogen plasma levels (R (2) = 0.23) and that fibrinogen, ApoA1 and age can explain only about 10% of the observed variability in D-Dimer.