Resistin increases with obesity and atherosclerotic risk factors in patients with myocardial infarction.

The objective of the study was to assess the relation of resistin to the anthropometric parameters, metabolic risk factors, and C-reactive protein (CRP) in men with myocardial infarction. Subjects were 40 obese (age, 53.6 +/- 7.39 years; body mass index, > or =30 kg/m2) and 40 lean (age, 54.4 +/- 6.62 years; body mass index, <25 kg/m2) men with first acute myocardial infarction. Waist and hip circumferences, CRP, uric acid, fasting glucose, lipid profile, and blood resistin concentration were measured. In obese patients, triglycerides, fasting glucose, and CRP were significantly higher whereas high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was lower than in lean patients. The range of blood resistin concentration was 6.0 to 70.5 ng/mL: 27.84 +/- 12.15 ng/mL in obese subjects and 17.35 +/- 11.08 ng/mL in lean subjects (P < .0001). Significant positive correlation was revealed between blood resistin concentration and each of the analyzed anthropometric parameter and with fasting glucose, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and CRP, whereas negative relation was observed between resistin and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. As revealed by univariate logistic regression analysis, risk of blood resistin concentration being greater than the median value (19.75 ng/mL) was increased by obesity, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol <40 mg/dL, hypertension, and CRP. In multivariate model, independent variables associated with higher median of resistin were obesity and CRP. Obesity increased 5.5-fold the probability of blood resistin concentration being greater than 19.75 ng/mL, whereas each 1-mg/dL increase in CRP increased this probability by 13%. In patients with acute myocardial infarction, obesity is positively related to blood resistin concentration. Resistin is likely to play a major role in the atherogenesis and its complications, and this action seems to be mostly related to the inflammatory reaction.