Plasma lipids in a London population and their relation to other risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Abstract

SUMMARY Fasting plasma total cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations and high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol concentrations have been measured in a random sample of 502 men and 503 women London local government employees, aged 16 to 64 years. In subjects aged 35 to 54 years, the frequency of 'hypercholesterolaemia', defined by one recently recommended criterion of plasma cholesterol .7-1 mmol/l, was 28-0 per cent in the men and 30 4 per cent in the women. The frequency of 'hypertriglyceridaemia' (plasma triglyceride >2-0 mmol/l) in the same age group was 24 8 per cent for the men and 6-0 per cent for the women.In the whole sample of 1005, there was no case of the WHO Type III lipoprotein abnormality and oniy one example of the WHO Type V abnormality. The method of spline function analysis showed unimodality in the two-dimensional cholesterol/triglyceride frequency distribution for both men and women. Using multiple regression analysis, total cholesterol was independently, positively related to log1o-triglyceride, HDL-cholesterol, and age. Log1o-triglyceride was related positively to total cholesterol, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, uric acid, and fasting blood sugar in both sexes.Mean HDL-cholesterol concentrations were significantly higher in women compared with men only in the 45 to 64 age range. By multiple regression analysis, HDL-cholesterol was independently positively related to total cholesterol and negatively related to loglo-triglyceride in both sexes, and positively related to age in women.

Serum lipids and anticonvulsants

“…In 1975, new attention was drawn especially to the high-density-lipoproteins (HDL), when Miller & Miller (1975) postulated that these lipid fractions are a protective factor against atherosclerosis. In the following years many authors confirmed the fact of a low level of plasma-HDL in patients with cardiovascular diseases (Berg et al 1976, Fuller et al 1978, Miller et al 1977, Steinberg 1978. In various previously reported studies ( Livingston 1976, Luoma et al 1979, Mertz 1979, Pelkonen et al 1975, Reunanen & Sotaniemi 1977) elevated levels of serum lipids had been found in epileptics undergoing long-term treatment with anticonvulsants.…”