Evaluation of mean platelet volume as a risk factor for ischemic heart disease in patients on regular hemodialysis

Introduction Patients with kidney failure on chronic hemodialysis (HD) have a markedly increased risk of ischemic heart disease (IHD), which is a leading cause of mortality in this population. Identifying simple, noninvasive, and cost-effective biomarkers to predict IHD in this group is essential. Mean platelet volume (MPV) is a marker of platelet activation. The study aimed to evaluate its potential association with IHD in HD patients. Patients and methods This case-control study included 60 chronic HD patients who were classified into two equal groups: group I: 30 patients without evidence of IHD, and group II: 30 patients with IHD as defined by history of myocardial infarction, coronary artery bypass grafting or greater than or equal to 50% stenosis on coronary angiography. Results MPV was significantly higher in patients with IHD compared with those without ( P =0.010). MPV at a cutoff greater than 8.8 fl predicted IHD with an AUC of 0.694, sensitivity of 73.3%, specificity of 53.3%, positive predictive value of 61.1%, negative predictive value of 66.7%, and overall accuracy of 63.3%. Conclusion MPV may serve as a useful, noninvasive biomarker for predicting IHD in chronic HD patients and may be of help in cardiovascular risk stratification.