Association between factor V Leiden mutation and coronary artery disease in the northeast region of Turkey.

Factor V Leiden (FVL) has recently been described as a genetic factor with a propensity towards venous thromboembolism; however, it is thought to have a doubtful role in coronary artery disease (CAD). This study aimed to investigate whether FVL is one of the risk factors for CAD in north-east Turkey. Seventy-five patients with angiographically documented CAD and 78 individuals without angiographically documented CAD were studied to examine the association of the frequency of the FVL mutation with CAD and control individuals. Blood samples from the patients and controls were analyzed for the FVL mutation by DNA analysis, using the polymerase chain reaction-sequence-specific primers method. FVL mutation was found in eight of 75 (10%) patients with CAD and was totally absent in control individuals (P = 0.001). There were no significant differences in terms of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, dyslipidemia, plasma fibrinogen level, smoking, gender and family history of CAD with and without the FVL mutation in the patient group. The results of this study suggest that FVL mutation may be one of the important risk factors in developing CAD in northeast Turkey.