An increase of C-reactive protein is associated with enhanced activation of endogenous fibrinolysis at baseline but an impaired endothelial fibrinolytic response after venous occlusion

The goal of this study was to determine whether chronic inflammation of the vascular wall may be associated with an impaired activation of the fibrinolytic system. Inflammation plays an important role in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis, and the fibrinolytic system may prevent local thrombus formation. We included 50 patients six months after their first myocardial infarction. Plasma levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein (CRP) were determined at basal conditions, and the fibrinolytic parameters tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) and plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1 (PAI-1) were measured at basal conditions and after a standardized venous occlusion (VO) of the forearm. Patients with high CRP levels (≥3 mg/l) showed a significantly higher t-PA activity at baseline compared with patients with medium (1 to 2.9 mg/l) and low (