CYP2C19 Polymorphism is Associated With Amputation Rates in Patients Taking Clopidogrel After Endovascular Intervention for Critical Limb Ischaemia

Objective Clopidogrel is a pro-drug requiring cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C19 enzyme to be oxidised to its active form. This study evaluated the association between the CYP 2C19 genetic polymorphism and clinical outcomes in patients with critical limb ischaemia (CLI) taking clopidogrel after endovascular therapy (EVT). Methods This was a retrospective study. Patients with CLI who had undergone EVT between August 2014 and January 2017 were included. The study subjects were divided into three groups according to the loss of function (LOF) CYP2C19 alleles: (1) extensive metaboliser (EM); (2) intermediate metaboliser (IM); and (3) poor metaboliser (PM). All patients underwent a platelet function test (VerifyNow). Amputation free survival and all cause mortality were estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method. The association between baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes was assessed with the Cox proportional hazard model. Results A total of 278 CLI patients (EM: 153, IM: 79, PM: 46) who underwent EVT were included. There were 180/278 (64.7%, EM: 107, IM: 45, PM: 28) patients who completed the 12 month follow up examination. Carriers of at least one CYP2C19 LOF allele (44.9%, 125/278) had diminished pharmacodynamic responses to clopidogrel as measured using VerifyNow (174 ± 27 platelet reactivity units (PRU), 216 ± 21 PRU, and 245 ± 35 PRU for patients with EM, IM, and PM CYP2C19 profiles, respectively; EM vs. IM, p  Conclusion CYP2C19 genetic profiles can significantly influence clinical outcomes (in both amputation free survival and all cause mortality) in CLI patients who are taking only clopidogrel after EVT.