부산대학교 도서관

Abstract: Increased serum uric acid has been identified as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. However, because of its antioxidant capacity, uric acid may play a beneficial role in endothelial function. This paradoxical relationship between uric acid and endothelial function in chronic heart failure patients remains poorly understood. Thirty-eight chronic heart failure patients (New York Heart Association functional class II–III, mean age 58±10 years and mean left ventricular ejection fraction 25±8%) and twelve age-and-sex-matched healthy controls were studied. Chronic heart failure patients showed higher uric acid levels (7.3±2.3 mg/dL vs. 6.1±0.2 mg/dL, p <0.05) and lower extracellular superoxide dismutase activity (136±36 U ml−1 min−1 vs. 203±61 U ml−1 min−1, p <0.01) and endothelium-dependent vasodilatation (4.0±1.6% v. 9.1±3.0%, p <0.01) when compared with control subjects. In chronic heart failure patients, correlations between both uric acid levels and extracellular superoxide dismutase activity (r =0.45; p <0.01), and uric acid and endothelium-dependent vasodilatation (r =0.35; p =0.03) were detected. These correlations were not observed in healthy individuals, suggesting a positive effect of uric acid on endothelial function partially mediated by modulation of extracellular superoxide dismutase activity in chronic heart failure. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]