BLOOD SCIENCES
study that PV plays a significant part in the diagnosis and monitoring of CVD, along with other criteria. In the 2017 publication the authors conclude that although plasma and blood viscosity may have a role in the pathogenesis of CVD and mortality, much of their association with CVD and mortality is due to the mutual effects of major CVD risk factors. However, plasma viscosity adds to the discrimination of CVD and mortality and might be considered for inclusion in a multivariable risk score. In a 2023 study Lowe et al. found that plasma viscosity was significantly associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) events, cardiovascular disease and all cause mortalities.14
(1988)13 Similarly, in
another paper by Koenig et al. (1998) the authors found: “A conclusive and independent association between a first major incident CHD event in middle aged men.” It reported: “The association between plasma viscosity and CHD events remained substantial.”15 In Peters et al. (2017) study the authors suggested that plasma viscosity could be used as a predictor of mortality in cardiovascular disease in a Scottish cohort 17-year follow-up study, if included in multivariable risk scores.11
In 1998 a further paper by Junker et al. found that plasma viscosity is directly related to the severity of coronary heart disease.16
The authors also confirmed Cardiovascular disease infographic, from World Heart Federation.
Dintenfass (1985) states that the importance of blood viscosity in ischaemic heart diseases is not new, which suggests that not only is the association between viscosity and CVD well-established, but it is also long-established.8
found that from a study of 344 subjects: “Patients suffering from chronic coronary heart disease have significantly higher blood and plasma viscosity than healthy groups of the same sex.”9
He states
that: “A higher viscosity of plasma is a contributory factor in the development of the clinical symptoms of coronary heart disease and possibly atherosclerosis itself.” A study carried out by Peters et al. in 2017 on plasma viscosity described as the ‘largest prospective study yet reported of plasma viscosity and whole-blood viscosity in prediction of cardiovascular disease’, also found an association between PV and CVD risk, as well as mortality.10 There have been many other studies that have also found association between
PV and CVD, including a study by Lowe et al. (1991) of 529 subjects.11
The authors Mayer (1964) also
found that: “Five known coronary risk factors (cigarette-smoking, blood pressure, body mass index, cholesterol and triglyceride) were associated to elevated plasma viscosity.” Letcher et al. also explored the link between hypertension (one of the five risk factors for coronary artery disease) and its association with increased PV in a 1981 study.12
In this
study, ‘blood pressure and components of blood viscosity were measured in 49 normal subjects and in 49 untreated patients with essential hypertension’, which concluded that PV was higher in hypertensive group when compared with normal blood pressure group. In the above-mentioned large study by
Peters et al. (2017) involving 3,386 males, the author found that a 1-SD increase in plasma viscosity increases the risk of CVD by 1.12 and mortality by 1.20. This study has a similar conclusion to Ernst et al.
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the previously reported correlation between plasma viscosity and fibrinogen. They quote: “Evidently, plasma viscosity contributes to the cardiovascular risk and may be of special importance in areas of reduced blood flow, as commonly occurs in patients with advanced atherosclerosis.” In another study, de Simone et al. (1990) found that the high plasma viscosity was shown to lead to an increased risk of acute myocardial infarction (MI) in patients with unstable angina pectoris.17
In similar publications
an elevation of plasma viscosity was also found in patients with severe unstable angina pectoris compared with patients with stable angina pectoris and to healthy individuals.18-20
Hence plasma viscosity is
shown to be a good predictive parameter. Discussion
Plasma viscosity testing has been available in many haematology laboratories for many years and has become relatively well understood as a fast, reliable and standardised test.21 However, the measurement and clinical application of clinical viscosity testing is a constantly ongoing progressive process. It has been clearly demonstrated from the studies mentioned above, which have been carried out over many years,
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