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Comparative Study
. 2009 Jan;7(1):34-40.
doi: 10.1111/j.1538-7836.2008.03215.x. Epub 2008 Oct 30.

African-American ethnicity is associated with higher plasma levels of D-dimer in adults with hypertension

M Khaleghi  1 , U Saleem, R D McBane, T H Mosley Jr, I J Kullo
Affiliations
Comparative Study

African-American ethnicity is associated with higher plasma levels of D-dimer in adults with hypertension

M Khaleghi et al. J Thromb Haemost. 2009 Jan.

Abstract

Background: African Americans with hypertension have higher cardiovascular morbidity and mortality than hypertensives from other ethnic groups. Plasma D-dimer, a fragment generated from fibrin during lysis of mature clot in vivo, is a predictor of adverse cardiovascular events.

Objective: We investigated whether plasma levels of D-dimer differ between African American (AA) and non-Hispanic white (NHW) adults with hypertension.

Methods: Participants included 933 AA (65 +/- 9 years, 72% women) and 821 NHW (61 +/- 9 years, 56% women) from the community. D-dimer was measured using an immunoturbidimetric assay. Multivariable regression analyses, stratified by gender, were performed to assess whether AA ethnicity was associated with D-dimer levels after adjustment for age, body mass index (BMI), total and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, diabetes, history of smoking, medication (statin and aspirin) use, lifestyle variables (physical activity, alcohol intake, and education), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), and a marker of inflammation, C-reactive protein (CRP).

Results: D-dimer levels were higher in AA men and women than in their NHW counterparts (mean +/- SD; men 256 +/- 199 vs. 190 +/- 183 ng mL(-1), P < 0.001; women, 290 +/- 233 vs. 225 +/- 195 ng mL(-1), P < 0.001). In both sexes, after adjustment for age, conventional risk factors, medication use, and lifestyle variables, AA ethnicity remained associated with higher D-dimer levels (P = 0.002 in men, P = 0.006 in women). These associations remained significant after additional adjustment for eGFR and plasma CRP (P = 0.003 in men, P < 0.0001 in women).

Conclusions: Among adults with hypertension, AA ethnicity was independently associated with higher plasma levels of D-dimer.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure of Conflict of Interests: None

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Mean±SD of plasma D-dimer levels in each gender/ethnic group. *P value <0.001
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of plasma D-dimer levels in each gender/ethnic group. A. Women; B. Men.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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