[Reference values for apolipoproteins and HDL-2/HDL-3 in childhood]

It is known from epidemiological studies, that high apolipoprotein B or low HDL-2 concentrations in serum are correlated with an increased risk for premature cardiovascular diseases. It was the aim of this study to generate reference values for apolipoproteins and HDL-cholesterol fractions to accomplish early diagnosis and therapy. All concentrations are age depending, being low at birth and increasing during the first years of life. This rise is more pronounced in apolipoprotein B than in apolipoprotein AI and HDL-2. Apolipoprotein II and HDL-3 reach later childhood values as early as at the end of the first month of life. The ratio of B and AI, which is a very good indicator for an increased risk for premature cardiovascular diseases, moves also distinctively upward during the first year of life.