The relationship of cystatin c levels and cardiac damage in essential hypertension: echocardiographic study

ABSTRACTTHE RELATIONSHIP OF CYSTATIN C LEVELS AND CARDIAC DAMAGEIN ESSENTIAL HYPERTENSION: ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC STUDYHypertension is one of the important determinable risk factors forcardiovasculer diseases. It can cause cardiac, cerobrovascular, peripheric vascular andrenal failure and severe morbidity and mortality. In patients who are not cured, themajor clinical outcomes of hypertension are not only because of high blood pressure,but also pathophysiological, functional and structural answer for hypertension.Although the initial cardiac changes can be compansetated, in hypertensive patients notcured cardiac structure and function fails in time.Cystatin C is a 13 Kda weight basic endogenous nonglikolized protein which isan important marker to evaluate glomeruler filtration rate. It?s more sensitive andspesific marker for glomeruler filtration rate, when compared to serum creatininconcentration. It?s also claimed to be an important marker for determining organdamage in essential hypertension. In our study we investigated the relationship betweenthe left ventricular hypertrophy and Cystatin C levels in essential hypertension. Weincluded 130 patients (97 female and 33 male ) who have never receivedantihypertension drugs before or stopped receiving two weeks before. In each case theechocardiographic investigation was carried out to determine left ventricular mass indexand wall thickness Cystatin C, CRP and microalbumin levels are evaluated with routinebiochemical analysis. In the study group % 18.2 of men and % 30.9 women had leftventricular hypertrophy. The Cystatin C levels were statically significant elevated inleft ventricular hypertrophy (+) essential hypertensive patients when compared withleft ventricular hypertrophy (-) patients.In conclusion Cystatin C can be an important paremeter to define leftventricular hypertrophy and it can be also clinically usefull, sensitive marker fordiagnosis target organ damages in patients with essential hypertension.Key words: Hypertension, essential hypertension, Cystatin C, left ventricularhypertrophy, target organ damageviii