Do Novel Risk Biomarkers Reflect the Severity of Peripheral Arterial Disease?

The association between novel atherosclerotic risk biomarkers and severity of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) was assessed. Patients (n = 133) with PAD were recruited. Established risk biomarkers including low- and high-density cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure were measured. Novel risk biomarkers including plasma C-reactive protein, von Willebrand factor (vWF), interleukin 6, red cell folate (RCF), vitamin B12, total homocysteine (tHcy), and Hcy genotypes were also determined. The severity of PAD was evaluated, using ankle-brachial pressure index (ABPI), brachial-knee, and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (bk- and ba-PWV). Plasma tHcy and systolic blood pressure had a positive independent correlation with bk-PWV (beta = +0.56, P = .02 and beta = +0.38, P < .001, respectively). Red cell folate had an independent inverse correlation with bk-PWV (beta = -0.01, P = .01). Systolic blood pressure showed an independent positive correlation with ba-PWV only after adjustment for other risk biomarkers (beta = +0.1, P = .04). Novel markers, plasma tHcy, and RCF levels correlated with the severity of PAD.