Alpaslan ÜNLÜ, Zeynep ÇAKIR
Eurasian Journal of Emergency Medicine - 2026;25(1):315-319
Aim: While carbon monoxide is a gas that is toxic when introduced exogenously into the body, it also functions as a signaling molecule with regulatory roles in many physiological processes within the cardiovascular system. The aim of this study is to investigate the utility of endogenous carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) for estimating mortality within the first three months after admission among patients with acute coronary syndrome. Materials and Methods: Our study was conducted on patients who came to the emergency service with a complaint of chest pain, met the inclusion criteria, were hospitalized in the cardiology clinic. Patients' demographic characteristics, coronary angiography results, electrocardiogram, blood gas assessment, and blood tests' prognosis were recorded. Results: The average age was 61.52+/-13.19 (min: 21 - max: 93) and 164 (71.9%) patients were male. Angiography results showed that 110 (48.2%) patients had obstruction of the left anterior descending artery, and 82 (36%) patients had obstruction of the right coronary artery. In the analysis conducted after excluding patients who had been exposed to cigarette smoke before hospital admission, endogenous COHb level was not a statistically significant predictor of in-hospital mortality (p=0.248) or three-month mortality (p=0.26). Conclusion: No statistically significant relationship was found between endogenous COHb levels and predicted mortality in patients diagnosed with acute coronary syndrome who were neither exposed to cigarette smoke nor had a history of smoking before hospital admission. However, we think that the small patient population, together with limitations in the study may have limited the findings.
