Association between Atherogenic Dyslipidemia and Subclinical Myocardial Injury in the General Population

Background: Subclinical myocardial injury (SCMI) is associated with an increased risk of poor cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes. Understanding the underlying risk factors for SCMI is crucial for the prevention and management of CVD. We hypothesized that atherogenic dyslipidemia, a combination of high triglycerides (TG) and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), is associated with an increased risk of SCMI. Methods: This analysis from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES-III) included 7093 participants (age 59.3 ± 13.4 years, 52.8% women, and 49.4% White) free of CVD. Atherogenic dyslipidemia was defined as TG ≥ 150 mg/dL and HDL-C < 40 mg/dL in men or <50 mg/dL in women. A validated electrocardiographic-based cardiac infarction injury score (CIIS) ≥ 10 was considered positive for SCMI. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association of different combinations of TG and HDL-C groups, including atherogenic dyslipidemia with SCMI. Results: About 22.5% (n = 1594) of participants had atherogenic dyslipidemia, and 26.3% (n = 1862) had SCMI. Compared to participants with normal TG and normal HDL-C, those with atherogenic dyslipidemia had a higher prevalence of SCMI (31.2% vs. 23.9%, p-value < 0.001). In a multivariable logistic regression model, atherogenic dyslipidemia was associated with the highest odds of SCMI followed by high TG/normal HDL-C, then low HDL-C/normal TG [OR (95% CI): 131 (1.14, 1.52), 1.13 (0.97, 1.33), and 1.01 (0.86, 1.20), respectively). Conclusions: Atherogenic dyslipidemia is associated with a higher risk of SCMI, which highlights the role of nontraditional risk factors in the development of subclinical CVD.