Mechanisms
Elevated Lp(a) and prothrombotic changes may drive cardiovascular risk even in early kidney disease, a review (World J Nephrol 2015)
Original title: Early renal failure as a cardiovascular disease: Focus on lipoprotein(a) and prothrombotic state
This review by Catena, Colussi, Nait, Pezzutto, Martinis and Sechi examines the role of Lp(a) and prothrombotic factors as potential contributors to cardiovascular events in patients with early-stage renal failure, a population already at increased cardiovascular risk even before advanced disease. Beyond classic risk factors, emerging factors, including Lp(a) and prothrombotic markers, have been found altered in early renal failure across different causes of kidney disease and linked to detection of cardiovascular complications, though evidence that correcting these factors improves cardiovascular outcomes is largely missing. The authors discuss Lp(a) and prothrombotic factors specifically as potential contributors to cardiovascular events in this early renal failure population.
Original abstract
Patients with renal failure are at increased risk of cardiovascular events even at the earliest stages of disease. In addition to many classic cardiovascular risk factors, many conditions that are commonly identified as emerging risk factors might contribute to occurrence of cardiovascular disease. Changes in circulating levels of many of these emerging risk factors have been demonstrated in patients with early stages of renal failure caused by different types of renal disease and have been associated with detection of cardiovascular complications. However, for most of these factors evidence of benefits of correction on cardiovascular outcome is missing. In this article, we comment on the role of lipoprotein(a) and prothrombotic factors as potential contributors to cardiovascular events in patients with early renal failure.
Summary written by lp-a.org from the published abstract; figures as published. Page updated 18 August 2026. Methods.