Background and objective: Cardiovascular disease accounts for about 38% of the cause of death in Iran. The traditional risk factors can not justify the high prevalence of the disease, and therefore oxidative stress has been proposed as a contributing factor in morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the plasma measures of oxidative stress in patients with CAD presented with myocardial infarction (MI) or without MI compared with the control group. 

Materials and Methods: This study consistsed of three groups as follow: 38 patients suffering from CAD without MI (mean age: 56.55±8.64), 20 CAD patients with MI (mean age: 50.85±7.79) and 55 healthy subjects (mean age: 49.85±8.5) as controls. Vitamin E concentration was determined through HPLC. and the amounts of glutathione and malondialdehyde were measured by spectrophotometer.

Results: Plasma malondialdehyde levels were markedly higher in patient groups than in control groups (P<0.05). Lower glutathione levels were observed in patient groups compared with control group, whereas, reduced Vitamin E was only noted in CAD patients without MI (P<0.05). No significant differences were seen between measures of oxidative stress in patient groups.

Conclusion: Reduction of glutathione molecules as antioxidants and enhanced lipid peroxidation may be involved in pathogenesis of CAD through up-regulation of signaling pathways leading to tissue damage.