PROTHROMBIN FRAGMENT F1- CORRELATIONS WITH CARDIOVASCULAR RISK-FACTORS(2 )

Plasma prothrombin fragment F 1+2 (F1 + 2), thrombin-antithrombin comp lexes (TAT), fibrinogen and factor VII were related to variables assoc iated with increased cardiovascular risk in 86 plasma donors (49 male and 37 female). F1 + 2 had a log-normal distribution and increased sig nificantly with age and body mass index (BMI). Significantly, higher F 1 + 2 levels were found in smoking compared with non-smoking males and in indolent males compared with males taking regular exercise. Higher levels were found in subjects with a parental history of ischaemic he art disease than in those lacking such a history. F1 + 2 correlated st rongly with increasing cholesterol in males. Fibrinogen was significan tly higher in male smokers than male non-smokers but did not vary with age or BMI. Factor VII correlated strongly with cholesterol and to a lesser extent with fibrinogen, F1 + 2 and BMI, but not with smoking. F 1 + 2 correlated more closely with risk factors for cardiovascular dis ease than fibrinogen and factor VII, and consistently reflected the di fference in cardiovascular risk when correlated with risk factors whic h have markedly different effects between the sexes. It promises to be a useful predictive marker of ischaemic heart disease.