Prognostic Value of VEGF in Patients Submitted to Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

• Main Authors: Catarina Ramos, Patrícia Napoleão, Mafalda Selas, Cláudia Freixo, Ana Maria Viegas Crespo, Miguel Mota Carmo, Rui Cruz Ferreira, Teresa Pinheiro
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hindawi Limited 2014-01-01
• Series: Disease Markers
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/135357

We examined the longitudinal changes of VEGF levels after percutaneous coronary intervention for predicting major adverse cardiac events (MACE) in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients. VEGF was measured in 94 CAD patients’ serum before revascularization, 1-month and 1-year after. Independently of clinical presentation, patients had lower VEGF concentration than a cohort of healthy subjects (median, IQ: 15.9, 9.0–264 pg/mL versus 419, 212–758 pg/mL; P<0.001) at baseline. VEGF increased to 1-month (median, IQ: 276, 167–498 pg/mL; P<0.001) and remained steady to 1-year (median, IQ: 320, 173–497 pg/mL; P<0.001) approaching control levels. Drug eluting stent apposition and previous medication intake produced a less steep VEGF evolution after intervention (P<0.05). Baseline VEGF concentration <40.8 pg/mL conveyed increased risk for MACE in a 5-year follow-up. Results reflect a positive role of VEGF in recovery and support its importance in CAD prognosis.