The relation of mean platelet volume and count with the clinical and angiographic presentation of coronary artery disease

Abstract

Rupture of an atherosclerotic plaque associated with partial or complete thrombotic vessel occlusion is fundamental to the development of acute coronary syndromes. Activated platelets play an important role in the pathogenesis of acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Platelets are heterogeneous with respect to their size, density, and reactivity. It was proposed that large platelets are more active hemostatically, and platelet size has been found to be increased in patients with ACS. We studied 396 patients defined clinically as noncoronary chest pain (n = 74), stable angina pectoris (n = 96), unstable angina pectoris (n = 156) and acute myocardial infarction (n = 70). Coronary angiography was performed to 377 patients and the patients were subdivided into those with normal coronary angiogram (n = 81), single (n = 100), double (n = 102) and triple-vessel disease (n = 94). We measured the mean platelet volume (MPV) and platelet count, in these patients. Mean platelet volume in patients with unstable angina pectoris was significantly larger than the patients with other clinical presentation (p = 0.041). There was no significant difference in mean platelet volume between patients with normal coronary angiogram and 1-, 2-, or 3-vessel disease. The mean platelet count was not significantly different in among the groups. Our findings suggested that, using a routine laboratory procedure; MPV might be used as a predictive marker for unstable coronary heart disease, but not for acute myocardial infarction.