Abstract: To examine if hyperhomocysteinemia was associated with atherosclerotic vascular disease in hemodialysis patients, fifty-three chronic uremic patients on regular hemodialysis treatment were studied, of which twenty-three patients had coronary or cerebral vascular disease. Total fasting plasma homocysteine concentrations were determined by HPLC with fluorescent detection. Total homocysteine level was higher in patients with cardiovascular disease than in those without(P< 0.05). In a stepwise multiple logistic regression analysis (α=0.1) to determine the independent contribution of each factor to the risk of vascular disease, only plasma total homocysteine levels showed a significant correlation in this model. Our results support the hypothesis that higher total plasma homocysteine concentration may be an independent risk factor for atherosclerotic vascular disease of hemodialysis patients.

Key words: homocysteine, hemodialysis, atherosclerosis