Genetic factors of the hemostatic system in young patients with myocardial infarction

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the first cause of death worldwide and represents a public health issue in our country. Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) represents the main thrombotic complication of CAD. Approximately 9% of the new events of MI occur in patients < 45 years of age. Discussion: AMI is produced by development of a thrombus at the site of an atherosclerotic plaque that initiates abrupt arterial occlusion, with ischemia and cell death. AMI results from the interaction of gene-environment factors. There are several modifiable factors such as hypertension, diabetes, smoking, obesity, and hypercholesterolemia associated with AMI. However, in a large number of patients with AMI, modifiable risk factors are not present. In the last decade, several genetic variants (polymorphisms) have been identified associated with AMI in genes related to coagulation proteins, fibrinolytic system, platelet receptors, homocysteine metabolism, endothelial dysfunction, abnormal blood flow and oxidative stress. Conclusions: Identifying the genes associated with CAD will allow us to develop more efficacious treatment strategies and will also help to identify at-risk subjects, thereby enabling the introduction of early preventive measures. Thus, many research efforts continue to address the identification of acquired and inherited risk factors of this complex disease.