Tumor necrosis factor-α plays an important role in restenosis development

Genetic factors appear to be important in the restenotic process after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), as well as in inflammation, a pivotal factor in restenosis. TNFα, a key regulator of inflammatory responses, may exert critical influence on the development of restenosis after PCI. The GENetic DEterminants of Restenosis (GENDER)...

Vascular endothelial growth factor overexpression in ischemic skeletal muscle enhances myoglobin expression in vivo

Therapeutic angiogenesis using vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is considered a promising new therapy for patients with arterial obstructive disease. Clinical improvements observed consist of improved muscle function and regression of rest pain or angina. However, direct evidence for improved vascularization, as evaluated by angiography...

Current PTCA practice and clinical outcomes in the Netherlands: The real world in the pre-drug-eluting stent era

Aims To document the practice of interventional cardiology and the clinical restenosis rate, as well as the risk factors for clinical restenosis in an unselected population of patients in daily practice and to provide a perspective for the need of new devices such as drug-eluting stents. Methods and results A total of 3177 consecutive patients,...

Urokinase-type plasminogen activator system predicts risk of cardiovascular events in patients with angina pectoris: Results of the ECAPTURE study

In most Westernized societies cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death over the age of 45 years and one-quarter of these deaths occur in men below the age of 65 years. The haemostasis system has been identified as an important system in cardiovascular disease (CVD). The European Concerted Action on Prevention from Thrombosis by...

Markers of fibrinolytic potency and clotting activation in stable angina pectoris: Role of urokinase, assessment of atrioventricular differences and correlation with coronary patency

To characterize the extent of activation of the hemostatic system and to detect local alterations which may favour thrombus formation we obtained samples from the right atrium (RA) and left ventricle (LV) of 60 stable angina patients (mean age 59 years, M/F: 49/11) during the cardiac catheterization procedure. None of the patients had a recent...

Production of C-reactive protein and risk of coronary events in stable and unstable angina

Background. Inflammation is an important feature of atherosclerotic lesions, and increased production of the acute-phase reactant, C-reactive protein (CRP), is associated with a poor prognosis in severe unstable angina. We have investigated the existence and possible significance of the acute-phase responses of CRP and another sensitive reactant...

Fibrinolytic factors and the risk of myocardial infarction or sudden death in patients with angina pectoris

Background: Disturbances of the fibrinolytic system that lead to decreased removal of fibrin deposits may be important risk factors for coronary thrombosis. There is as yet no consensus on the prognostic value of fibrinolytic parameters, which may be attributed in part to the choice of confounding variables controlled for. Methods and Results:...

Modulation of plasma fibrinogen levels by ticlopidine in healthy volunteers and patients with stable angina pectoris

Elevated plasma fibrinogen levels are associated with an increased risk for cardiac events. Ticlopidine is a drug that inhibits the ADP-induced aggregation of blood platelets and it also has been described that ticlopidine can decrease the plasma fibrinogen level in patients with vascular diseases. The mechanism of this decrease has not yet been...

Interindividual and intraindividual variability in plasma fibrinogen, TPA antigen, PAI activity, and CRP in healthy, young volunteers and patients with angina pectoris

We compared intraindividual and interindividual variability in the plasma levels of fibrinogen, tissue-type plasminogen activator (TPA) antigen, plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI) activity, and C-reactive protein (CRP) in 20 healthy, young individuals and 26 patients with stable angina pectoris (AP) who were at higher risk for cardiovascular...

Analysis of activation markers off coagulation, fibrinolysis and inflammation in unstable angina by probit transformation

In order to investigate the role of the hemostatic, fibrinolytic and inflammatory system in unstable angina, we assessed the levels of thrombin-antithrombin III (TAT), Prothrombin Fragment 1+2 (F1+2), plasmin-antiplasmin (PAP) and D-Dimer (DD) and of C-reactive protein (CRP) in 51 patients admitted to our CCU with severe unstable angina. Thirty...

Temporal relation between ischemic episodes and activation of the coagulation system in unstable angina

Background: Although a major role of coronary thrombosis in the pathogenesis of unstable angina has been demonstrated, the results of a series of studies have suggested that activation of the hemostatic system may not be confined to ischemic episodes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the temporal relation between ischemic episodes...

Ibopamine (Inopamil®)