Haemorheological, platelet and endothelial indices in relation to global measures of cardiovascular risk in hypertensive patients: a substudy of the Anglo-Scandinavian Cardiac Outcomes Trial

INTRODUCTION AND METHODS: We tested the hypothesis that there was a significant relationship between haemorheological markers [white blood cell count (WCC), plasma viscosity (PV), haematocrit (HCT) and fibrinogen], as well as plasma von Willebrand factor (vWf, an index of endothelial damage/dysfunction) and soluble P-selectin (sP-sel, an index of platelet activation), to five global measures of cardiovascular risk [i.e. Framingham coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke and cardiovascular death score, the Pocock cardiovascular risk score and the sum of individual risk factors]. RESULTS: Men with a high (> or = median, n = 156) Framingham 10-year CHD risk score had higher levels of WBC (P = 0.027), fibrinogen (P = 0.012) and vWF (P = 0.002) than 153 men with results <median. Men with a high 10-year stroke risk score had significantly higher levels of fibrinogen (P = 0.01) and vWF (P <0.0001). In stepwise linear regression analysis in men, vWF and fibrinogen were independent predictors of the number of risk factors (P <0.0001), whilst WCC, vWF and fibrinogen emerged as independent predictors of Framingham CHD risk (P <0.0001), and fibrinogen and vWF predicted Framingham stroke risk (R(2) = 0.089, P <0.0001). vWF, PV and fibrinogen were predictors of Pocock cardiovascular death risk (P <0.0001) but vWF was the only independent predictor of Framingham cardiovascular death risk (P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Abnormal haemorheological factors (particularly high plasma fibrinogen levels) and endothelial damage/dysfunction (high vWF), but not platelet activation (sP-sel), are related to established cardiovascular and death risk scores. This relationship was most evident amongst male 'high-risk' hypertensive subjects.