Elevation of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in humans during long-term therapy with amiodarone.

The distribution of plasma lipids was studied in 18 patients receiving amiodarone for 18 months, confirming that amiodarone is associated with a 17% elevation in total cholesterol and, for the first time, documenting increases in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The increase in high-density lipoprotein was proportionately greater than that of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, suggesting that the impact of changes in the predicted risk of coronary heart disease are less important than if the elevation consisted of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol alone.