Abstract Introduction and Objective: Oxidative reactions are involved in the development of atherosclerosis. The formation of oxygen and peroxy radicals and LDL-cholesterol oxidation are some examples. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between serum levels of bilirubin and coronary artery disease (CAD).
Materials and Methods: We evaluated 85 patients and 92 healthy participants. Total and direct bilirubin levels were measured using the diazo method, and levels of TG and total cholesterol were measured using the enzymatic method. The poly anion-cation and the direct method were used for HDL-cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol, respectively. Data was analyzed with SPSS version 17. Chi-square and student t test was used for qualitative and quantitative variables, respectively. P values less than 0.05 were considered significant.
Results: The level of direct, indirect, and total bilirubin was 0.213, 0.375, and 0.588 in healthy controls and 0.228, 0.365, and 0.593 mg/dl in patients, respectively. There was no significant difference in the level of direct, indirect, and total bilirubin between the two groups. There was also no significant difference in the level of TG and total cholesterol between the two groups. There was a significant difference in the mean serum level of HDL-cholesterol (P=0.001), family history (P=0.006), mean blood pressure (P<0.001), and smoking (P=0.031) between the two groups.
Conclusion: The results of this study show that bilirubin can be used as an indicator to predict CAD. Our findings are in line with some previous reports and contradictory to some others.
Keywords CAD, bilirubin, antioxidants.