Serum lipoprotein (a) levels in patients with arterial hypertension.

UNLABELLED: Lp(a) is capable of deleteriously altering the balance between the procoagulant and anticoagulant, proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory, and vasorelaxing and vasoconstricting properties of the endothelium. MATERIAL AND
METHOD: The purpose of this study was to investigate the serum concentration of Lp(a) and the main parameters of lipid profile in three groups of subjects: a control group that included 16 healthy subjects, 20 patients with arterial hypertension and dyslipidemia and 20 patients with arterial hypertension without dyslipidemia. Using B-mode ultrasonography, we evaluated carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and flow mediated vasodilation (FMD) on brachial artery.
RESULTS: We found significant higher Lp(a) concentrations in hypertensive patients with dislipidemia (70 +/- 55.95 mg/dL, p < 0.001) and in hypertensive patients without dislipidemia (69 +/- 52.33 mg/dL, p < 0.001), comparative with the control group (19 +/- 14.64 mg/dL). In hypertensive patients with dislipidemia we found a strong negative correlation between Lp(a) and carotid IMT (R2 = -0.75, p < 0.001) and a moderate negative correlation between Lp(a) and FMD (R2 = -0.38, p < 0.001). Lp(a) level wasn't correlated with the main parameters of lipid profile.
CONCLUSIONS: These results indicated that serum Lp(a) values could play an important role in essential hypertension pathogenesis and could be considered as an individual risk factor in hypertensive patients.