[Atherosclerosis and juvenile dyslipidemias]

Large-scale and systemic epidemiological, pathological and experimental studies emphasized and documented the childhood origin of atherosclerosis. There is increasing consensus that lipid levels in children to a large extent determine the rate of coronary artery disease (CAD) in the adult population. Minimal sudanophilic intimal deposits, and the presence of intracellular and extracellular lipid, and a slight increase in interstitial ground substance in 3 years of age or older patients are found. In the Bogalusa Hearth Study aortic fatty streaks were strongly related the antemortem levels of both total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) independent of race, sex, and age, and were negatively correlated with the ratio of high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) to low-density plus very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C+VLDL-C). The potential for primary prevention is real and the strongest piece of evidence for its is the remarkable trend in CHD mortality rates in recent times, rapidly downward in many western countries. A number of factors influence plasma levels of lipid and lipoproteins in newborn, in infants, in children and adolescents and their relevance as possible predictors of adult coronary artery disease. They are certain inherited disorders of dyslipoproteinemia (familial hypercholesterolemia, familial combined hyperlipidemia, hyperapobetalipoproteinemia, and hypoalphalipoproteinemia) and secondary causes of hyperlipidemia (congenital biliary atresia, glycogen storage diseases, hypothyroidism, diabetes mellitus and nephrotic syndrome, etc).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)