Expression of plasma thrombin-antithrombin Ⅲ complex, D-dimer and antithrombin Ⅲ in patients with atrial fibrillation and their significancein predicting thromboembolism
ZHONG Xiao-hong, WEI Ping, HUANG Min
No. 163 Hospital of the PLA, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan 410003, China
Abstract：Objective To explore the expression levels of thrombin-antithrombin III complex (TAT), D-dimer (D-D) and antithrombin Ⅲ (AT-Ⅲ) in patients with atrial fibrillation and their clinical values in forecasting thromboembolism. Methods We selected 110 atrial fibrillation outpatients/inpatients confirmed by electrocardiograph in Department of Cardiology, No. 163 Hospital of the PLA from January 2016 to October 2017. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) examination, left atrium and left atrial function detection and blood flow testing were performed to judge whether there was thrombosis or embolism. In addition, 40 healthy volunteers were enrolled in this study. The levels of plasma TAT, D-D and AT-Ⅲ activity were detected in the groups of atrial fibrillation and thromboembolism, atrial fibrillation without thrombus and healthy volunteers, and the differences in expression levels of the above-mentioned indicators in the three groups were analyzed. Results About 20.91% (23/110) atrial fibrillation patients with thrombosis or embolism were detected, and no thrombus was found in the rest 87 patients. Plasma levels of TAT and D-D were higher in atrial fibrillation patients than in the healthy group; moreover, plasma levels of TAT and D-D were higher in the thrombus-positive group than in the atrial fibrillation without thrombus group (P<0.05). Plasma level of AT-Ⅲ activity were lower in the atrial fibrillation and thrombus-positive group and the atrial fibrillation and thrombus-negative group than in the control group (P<0.05), but no statistically significant difference was found in plasma level of AT-Ⅲ activity between the atrial fibrillation and thrombus-positive group and the atrial fibrillation and thrombus-negative group (P>0.05). Conclusions The levels of TAT and D-D in peripheral blood of patients with thrombotic atrial fibrillation are high, but the level of AT-Ⅲ is low, which reflect the hemotological hypercoagulable state of the patients. It has a certain reference value for predicting the risk of thromboembolism in patients with atrial fibrillation.
2018, Vol. 25 
