Circulating nucleic acids of Chlamydia pneumoniae and cytomegalovirus in patients undergoing coronary angiography

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 208 consecutive patients undergoing elective coronary angiography or angioplasty were collected before, immedi ately after, and 4 h after the procedure. Nucleic acids of Chlamydia pneumo niae and of cytomegalovirus (CMV) were detected by PCR and confirmed by hyb ridization. Circulating C. pneumoniae DNA was identified in 24 patients (11 .5%) and was associated, with current smoking (odds ratio [OR] = 4.5, 95% c onfidence interval [CI] = 1.6 to 12.2, P = 0.004) but not with arterial nar rowing on coronary angiogram or with serological results positive for C, pn eumoniae. Circulating CMV DNA was identified in 36 patients (17.3%) and was associated with anti-CMV immunoglobulin G (OR = 2.7, 95% CI = 1.2 to 6.3, P = 0.02) but not with angiographic arterial narrowing or with the need for revascularization. Neither C, pneumoniae nor CMV DNA detection increased a fter angioplasty, a procedure in which endothelium is disrupted. Larger pro spective studies are needed to determine the prognostic significance of DNA detection.