INTRODUCTION:

Plasma homocysteine (HCYS) concentration is believed to be an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis.

METHODS:

HCYS was measured in a cohort of 584 Saudi Arabians participating in a national screening study of coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors. A total of 173 subjects (114 men and 59 women) had clinical CHD, of whom 82 (47.4%) had type 2 diabetes mellitus (56 men and 26 women). A further 127 subjects (60 men and 67 women) also had type 2 diabetes mellitus but no CHD. A total of 284 individuals (120 men and 164 women) were recruited as healthy controls, and had no previous history of CHD or diabetes. Serum HCYS was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with electrochemical detection.

RESULTS:

Univariate analysis showed HCYS concentrations were significantly lower in those with diabetes mellitus (DM) than in controls, for both men [8.7 (4.2-18.6) vs. 10.5 (4.5-20.5) mmol/l, median (5th-95th percentiles, p = 0.009] and women [6.3 (3.3-24.0) vs. 8.1 (4.0-17.9) mmol/l, p = 0.049]. Stepwise multivariate regression analysis indicated a relationship between HCYS concentration and age, sex and the presence of DM, but not with CHD.

CONCLUSIONS:

In the Saudi Arabian population, serum HCYS is not a risk factor for CHD, but is lower in patients with DM.