Abstract
It has been suggested that the risk of coronary heart disease increased with increasing
body iron stores. Free iron catalyzes the generation of free radicals and free radicals
promote the oxidation of lipids. The aim of this study was to determine the association
of serum ferritin levels with coronary artery disease (CAD) and to establish the relation
of ferritin to the lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde (MDA). The study included
188 patients. Thirty-eight patients (mean age: 55 ± 9 years) had angiographically
normal coronary arteries and 150 patients (mean age: 54 ± 10 years) had significant
stenosis at least in one coronary artery. Serum ferritin, total iron binding capacity
(TIBC), MDA levels, lipoprotein variables and CAD risk factors were determined in
all patients. Serum ferritin levels were significantly higher in patients with CAD
compared with control groups (105 ± 65 ng/ml versus 83 ± 71 ng/ml) (p<0.01). TIBC
was lower in patients with CAD (333 ± 62 μg/dl) versus 348 ± 48 μg/dl), (p<0.05).
In patients with CAD, serum MDA levels were significantly higher when compared with
control groups (8.1 ± 2 nmol/ml versus 5.9 ± 1.8 nmol/ml), (p<0.001). There were positive
correlation between ferritin and MDA levels (r=0.20, p = 0.02) and negative correlation
between TIBC and MDA levels (r=0.22, p = 0.001). These findings support the concept
that iron, being an important transition metal, might contribute to atherogenesis,
along with the classic risk factors. The results are also in agreement with the concept
that iron overload would elevate the risk of CAD by promoting the lipid peroxidation.
