The Relationship Between Levels of Sex Steroids and Coronary Collateral Circulation in Men Patients with Coronary Artery Disease

Abstract

Introduction: Coronary collateral circulation (CCC) is a natural bypass system for restoring blood flow, and a well-developed CCC is held to protect myocardial function and improve survival after coronary obstruction as potentially hampering the course of CAD progression. We explored the relationship between the serum levels of sex steroids and CCC. Patients and Methods: A total of 115 males with chronic coronary artery disease who had at least one total coronary artery occlusion were included. Patients were divided into two groups: a well CCC group (Rentrop grades 2-3, n= 64) and a poorly developed CCC group (Rentrop grades 0-1, n= 51). Serum levels of total testosterone, free testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) were recorded. A p-value below 0.05 was accepted as significant in all analyses. The confidence interval was accepted as 95%. Results: Serum total testosterone (ng/dL; 274.5 ± 57.7 vs. 329 ± 64.8, p