Related Experiment Videos
Relation of cardiovascular risk factors to atherosclerosis in type III hyperlipoproteinemia
G Feussner1, A Wagner, R Ziegler
1Abteilung Innere Medizin I, Schwerpunkt Endokrinologie und Stoffwechsel, Medizinische Universiätsklinik Heidelberg, Germany.
Insights
Type III hyperlipoproteinemia (HPL) increases atherosclerosis risk, but susceptibility varies. Age was the only significant risk factor differentiating patients with and without atherosclerosis in this study of familial HPL.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Genetics
- Metabolic Disorders
Background:
- Familial hyperlipoproteinemia type III (HPL) is linked to premature atherosclerosis.
- Significant individual variability exists in cardiovascular disease (CVD) susceptibility among HPL patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the influence of independent risk factors on atherosclerosis in patients with type III HPL.
- To determine the role of apolipoprotein E2 homozygosity in atherosclerosis development within this cohort.
Main Methods:
- Studied 67 patients with clinically overt type III HPL and apolipoprotein E2 homozygosity.
- Assessed various risk factors including lipid levels, age, sex, BMI, smoking, hypertension, and diabetes.
- Compared risk factor profiles between patients with and without atherosclerosis.
Main Results:
- Age was the only statistically significant difference between patients with and without atherosclerosis.
- Lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] levels were higher in the atherosclerosis group but not significantly.
- Other traditional risk factors did not show significant differences between the groups.
Conclusions:
- In type III HPL, age is a key differentiator for atherosclerosis development.
- Elevated Lp(a) may not be a significant component of the type III HPL clinical syndrome, unlike in familial hypercholesterolemia.
Abstract:
The familial lipoprotein disorder type III hyperlipoproteinemia (HPL) carries a marked increase in the risk of accelerated and premature atherosclerosis, but there is considerable variation among affected individuals in susceptibility to cardiovascular disease (CVD). We studied the influence of independent risk factors for atherosclerosis in 67 patients with clinically overt type III HPL and homozygosity for apolipoprotein (apo) E2. Among the different risk factors (lipid and lipoprotein levels, age, sex, body mass index, smoking status, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus) there was only a statistically significant difference in age between 25 patients with atherosclerosis and 42 patients without atherosclerosis. Serum lipoprotein (a), [Lp, (a)], levels were 30.6% higher in the atherosclerosis group, but this was not statistically significant. We conclude that (in contrast to familial hypercholesterolemia) elevated Lp (a) concentrations may not be regarded as a component of the clinical syndrome of type III HPL.