This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 26/12/2738    most recent 01.ATV.0000248534.30057.b5v1 Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Carty, C. L. Articles by Jarvik, G. P. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Carty, C. L. Articles by Jarvik, G. P. Related Collections Genetics of cardiovascular disease

(Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 2006;26:2738.)
© 2006 American Heart Association, Inc.

Atherosclerosis and Lipoproteins

Inflammatory Response After Influenza Vaccination in Men With and Without Carotid Artery Disease

Cara L. Carty; Patrick Heagerty; Karen Nakayama; E. Clair McClung; Julieann Lewis; Dawn Lum; Erin Boespflug; Carrie McCloud-Gehring; Behrooz R. Soleimani; Jane Ranchalis; Tamara J. Bacus; Clement E. Furlong; Gail P. Jarvik

From The University of Washington, Departments of Epidemiology (C.L.C.), Biostatistics (P.H.), and Medicine (Division of Medical Genetics) (K.N., E.C.M., J.L., D.L., E.B., B.R.S., J.R., T.B., C.F., G.P.J.), Seattle, Wash; Puget Sound Veterans Affairs Health Care System (C.M.-G.), Seattle, Wash.

Correspondence to Gail P. Jarvik, MD, PhD, University of Washington Medical Center, Division of Medical Genetics, Box 357720, Seattle, WA 98195-7720. E-mail pair{at}u.washington.edu

Objective— Inflammatory markers are associated with vascular disease; however, variation in the acute phase response (APR) has not been evaluated. We evaluated whether the APR magnitude in men with severe carotid artery disease (CAAD) (>80% stenosis) differed from that of men without stenosis (<15% stenosis).

Methods and Results— White males with (n=43) and without (n=61) severe CAAD receiving clinical influenza vaccinations were recruited. Their baseline and 24-hour after -vaccination blood samples were assayed for C-reactive protein (CRP), IL-6, and serum amyloid-a (SAA). In vivo APR to vaccination was measurable and varied among subjects. Adjusted for age, smoking, oral hypoglycemics, aspirin, and stain use, the relative 24-hour changes in levels of ln(CRP), ln(IL-6), and ln(SAA) were higher in men with CAAD than in men without, but only the SAA response was significant (P=0.02); the relative SAA response was 1.6 (95% confidence interval, 1.1 to 2.5) times higher in men with than without CAAD. The APR for all markers appeared to be independent of baseline levels.

Conclusions— Influenza vaccination results in a mild, but measurable, APR in men with and without CAAD. SAA APR variability may be a predictor of severe vascular disease that is independent of basal SAA level.

Influenza vaccination results in acute phase response (APR) in men with and without severe carotid artery disease. Increased serum amyloid A (SAA) APR predicted severe vascular disease. APR magnitude may be a marker of CAAD.

Key Words: acute phase response • inflammation • carotid artery disease