Lipoproteins and diet in coronary heart disease; a five-year study.

In a follow-up study for a five-year period of 351 patients with myocardial infarction and 119 patients with angina pectoris, the following observations were made:(a) The previously reported lipoprotein atherogenic index elevation in coronary heart disease was confirmed.(b) The prognosis in angina pectoris is strikingly and significantly worse when the lipoprotein atherogenic index is high.(c) Patients who died in the follow-up period showed significantly higher atherogenic index values than those who survived.(d) The lipoprotein atherogenic index measure is much superior to the serum cholesterol measurement as an indicator of the lipid disorder in coronary disease.(e) The low fat, low cholesterol diet is effective in maintaining chronically lowered lipoprotein atherogenic index values.(f) In patients who said they did not adhere to a low fat, low cholesterol diet, the recurrence and death rate was four times as high as in patients who stated they adhered to the diet.