The Prevalence of Activated Protein C Resistance and F V Leiden in Healthy Population of Edirne, Turkey

Activated protein C (APC) resistance has been found to be an important cause of venous thrombosis. The prevalence of F V Leiden (FVL) in general population is variable according to the region and the ethnic group. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of APC resistance and FVL in healthy population in Edirne as a representative sample of province of Edirne. Total 467 healthy subjects were studied. There were 238 males (50.96%) and 229 females (49.04%). APC resistance was studied by functional and DNA methods. There were a total 22/476 subjects (4.7%) were APC resistance. There were 20/476 subjects (4.28%) who had FVL by DNA test. Of these, there were 18 heterozygous and 2 homozygous FVL and other two subjects have no FVL mutation but have the high levels of FVIII to explain acquired APC resistance. The coexistence of FVL and the deficiencies of protein C (1/22), protein S (2/22) and antithrombin (1/22) were also studied. No one of subjects had prothrombin gene mutation. The data showed that the prevalence of APC resitance and FVL in healthy Turkish population were similar to the previously reported publications in Turkey and Europe. One thing is a keeping in mind to be the coexistence of FVL and the other known thrombophilic risk factors.