Effects of Homocysteine in Myocardial Infarction Patients in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Pakistan

Raised plasma Homocysteine (Hcy) was 1st proposed as a cause of vascular pathology in patients with inherited disorders of Homocysteine metabolism.leading to the hypothesis that individuals with slight to moderate elevated levels of Homocysteine may have an increased hazard for vascular disease. As an amino acid with a reactive sulfhydryl group, homocysteine has been proposed to intermediate vascular inflammation and damage by stimulating oxidative stress secondary to reactive oxygen species accumulation. which in turn leads to an rise in cardiac and vascular disease risk by stimulating endothelial dysfunction, smooth muscle cell proliferation, and vascular calcification. Consistent with this hypothesis, hyperhomocysteinemia a has been associated with an increased risk for coronary heart disease (CHD), heart failure, atrial fibrillation, stroke, and mortality.