To determine whether the presence of anticardiolipin (aCL)
antibodies in patients with
acute coronary syndrome is predictive of recurrent
cardiac events in
hospital stay and follow-up. The study population consisted of 80 patients with
acute coronary syndrome.
IgM and
IgG aCL levels were determined before hospital discharge. We divided the patients into those with an aCL
IgG >or= 40
IgG phospholipid units (group I,
n = 30) and those with an aCL
IgG < 40
IgG phospholipid units (group II, n = 50). All patients underwent coronary angiography. Follow-up coronary angiography was performed 12 months after
percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Infectious and
autoimmune diseases were exclusion criteria. Patients were observed to determine overall mortality, reinfarction, and restenosis. There were no differences between the groups with respect to the prevalence of
hypertension,
diabetes mellitus, and cigarette smoking, sex, or ejection fraction. The prevalence of left ventricular
thrombus was similar between the groups (group I: 16% versus group II: 16.7%, P > 0.05). Although the presence of left atrial
thrombus was much more frequent in
cardiolipin positive patients (13% versus 4%, respectively), the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.19). Restenosis was observed in 40% of the
cardiolipin positive patients and 14% of the
cardiolipin negative patients (P < 0.01). There was no significant association between reinfarction and anticardiolipin positivity during follow-up (26% versus 10%, P > 0.05). In group I patients, in-hospital mortality was somewhat more frequent compared to group II patients (4% versus 10%), but the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.27). One year mortality was similar between the groups. These results suggest that 1) restenosis occurs more frequently in anticardiolipin positive patients and 2) no association is evident between positive aCL and mortality, reinfarction, and intracardiac
thrombus.