A Study of the Relationships between Serum Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide, Sex Hormone, Homocysteine and Coronary Heart Disease in Postmenopausal Women

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationships among serum calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), homocysteine (Hcy), female hormone, and coronary arteriopathy in postmenopausal women. METHOD: In a cross-sectional study, serum CGRP, estrodiol (E2), progesterone (P) and Hcy levels of 144 postmenopausal women with coronary heart disease (CHD) and non-coronary heart disease (NCHD) were measured. RESULTS: The mean serum CGRP level was significantly lower in CHD patients than in NCHD subjects. The mean serum E2 and P level were significantly lower in CHD patients than in NCHD subjects. The mean serum Hcy level was significantly higher in CHD patients than in NCHD subjects. By multivariate logistic regression, the OR of high Hcy level ≥1, p<0.01, which suggests that Hcy is an independent risk factor in the development of coronary arteriopathy. The OR of CGRP, E2, and P are all≤1, indicating that CGRP, E2 and P are independent protective factor. CONCLUSION: The results of our study show that Hcy is an independent risk factor in the development of arteriopathy. CGRP and endogenous E2 are independent protective factors in the development of coronary arteriopathy. There are no relationships between Hcy, CGRP, and endogenous E2.