The factor V Leiden mutation is not a common cause of pregnancy-induced hypertension in Japan

Recent studies in Caucasian populations have shown an association of the Le iden mutation in factor V with preeclampsia (PE), It consists of a substitu tion of a G (G1691) with an A (A1691) at nucleotide position 1691 in exon 1 0, resulting in arginine instead of glutamine at residue 506 at the factor V cleavage site for activated protein C (APC); it contributes to the resist ance to APC, The purpose of this study was to determine whether the Leiden mutation is associated with pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), including PE, in Japanese women. We examined the genotypes of factor V of 71 Japanes e patients with PIH and 109 controls, None of the 180 Japanese women carrie d the factor V Leiden mutation. To date, the factor V Leiden mutation is ra re and not a common cause of PIH in Japan. The results may suggest that the re is a significant ethnic difference in the role of the Leiden mutation in compounding the risk factors in the pathogenesis of PIH between Japanese a nd Caucasian populations.