Abstract
Background: Aortic valve stenosis is an important clinical condition, with a significant mortality rate in the elderly. Plasma values of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) have been shown to act as a marker of prognosis in different clinical conditions and in the general population. Methods: Plasma levels of ALP were studied in a cohort of patients with aortic valve stenosis, and a 5-year survival evaluation was performed. Results: Twenty-four patients were under study, of whom 12 were dead at the 5-year follow-up. The median age at baseline evaluation was 79 years (interquartile range, 72-85 years), and 11 patients were female (13 were male). The median value of ALP, of 83 IU/L, was used to separate patients into two groups: 2 patients who died in the group with low ALP values versus 10 patients who died in the group with high ALP values. Using ALP with the same cutoff level, the Kaplan-Meier study with log-rank analysis showed a significance level <0.01. Cox regression analysis showed an overall significant result, with a significant level for plasma ALP (significance level 0.03), but not for age, sex, or transvalvular gradient (assessed by echocardiography). Conclusions: Elevated plasma ALP is associated with increased mortality risk in patients with aortic valve stenosis. This finding may merit evaluation in studies with a larger number of patients.