Hypertriglyceridemia: a case report from diagnostic laboratory, Barasat, West Bengal, India

Hypertriglyceridemia is defined as an abnormal concentration of triglyceride in the blood and has been associated with atherosclerosis, even in the absence of hypercholesterolemia. This case report is of 40-year-old man diagnosed to have hypertriglyceridemia who attended for routine screening in our diagnostic laboratory at Barasat. He was nonsmoker, non-alcoholic, had a reasonable diet with abundant fruits and vegetables, and was on regular exercise. He was not taking any lipid lowering medications. He hailed from Barasat, and was employed in Government sector in Barasat and policeman by profession. His father died at the age of 57 years in a heart attack; but his mother is healthy and now almost 62 years of age, and he has two brothers one elder and another younger to him, both are healthy. His blood pressure was normal, his body-mass index was 27, and his waist circumference was 96 cm and hip circumference was 103. His waist/hip ratio was 0.932. The Biochemical analyses were as follows- Fasting Glucose: 186 mg/dL, Total Cholesterol: 90 mg/dL, Triglycerides: 372 mg/dL, High-density cholesterol: 3.80 mg/dL, Low-density cholesterol: 2.90 mg/dL, VLDL: 83.20 mg/dL, Cholesterol/HDL-C ratio: 23.6:1, LDL-C/HDL-C: 0.07:1. This study revealed the increased prevalence of dyslipidemia to be more prevalent in 31-40 year males, suggesting that this group is at an increased risk of developing CAD leading to young infarcts. Combination lifestyle therapies i.e., enhanced physical activity and dietary modification and therapeutic intervention would help us in the treatment and management of dyslipidemia.