Plasma homocyst(e)ine, folate, and vitamin B-12 concentrations and risk for early-onset coronary artery disease.

High plasma homocyst(e)ine (Hcy) concentrations may be a determinant of coronary artery disease (CAD). Folate and vitamin B-12 are required for the primary metabolic pathway to reduce Hcy concentrations. The interrelationships of Hcy and these two vitamin cofactors were investigated in a case-control study of 101 white males aged 30-50 y with angiographically demonstrated CAD, and 108 white male, similarly aged, control subjects living in the same community as the patients. The odds ratio (OR) of CAD per quartile increase of plasma Hcy concentration based on control values was 1.6 (95% CI: 1.3, 2.1)