Coagulation status in patients with coronary artery disease taking 100 mg aspirin and healthy volunteers using PFA-100® and ROTEM®.

: Previous investigation revealed that age is a major risk factor for thomboembolic events. Earlier studies with thrombelastography have demonstrated procoagulant activity in elderly patients with coronary artery disease. The aim of the present study was to investigate age-related differences in the coagulation status of patients with documented coronary artery disease, healthy elderly and healthy young volunteers with the rotation thrombelastography (ROTEM®) and PFA-100®. Measured with ROTEM®, mean clot formation time (CFT (EXTEM)) in healthy young volunteers (120.8 ± 73.5 s) was significantly longer than in healthy elderly (78.3 ± 36.7 s, p < 0.05) and in patients with coronary artery disease (74.3 ± 59.1 s, p < 0.05). No difference was found between healthy elderly and patients with coronary artery disease. The lowest value for mean maximum clot formation (MCF (EXTEM)) was seen in healthy young volunteers (57.0 ± 6.1 mm) which was significantly different to healthy elderly (61.9 ± 4.8 mm, p < 0.05) and patients with coronary artery disease (65.3 ± 8.4 mm, p < 0.05). No difference could be found between healthy elderly and patients with coronary artery disease, although a trend to higher mean MCF (EXTEM) and lower mean CFT (EXTEM)in patients with coronary artery disease was found. Measured with the collagen/epinephrine cartridge of the PFA-100®, healthy young volunteers (166.4 ± 59.5 s) had numerical but insignificantly longer mean closure times compared to healthy elderly (138.5 ± 53.3 s). These findings point to agerelated differences in thrombelastographic parameters. The ROTEM® analysis indicates an increased coagulability in patients with coronary artery disease and healthy elderly compared to healthy young volunteers.