A study of lipid levels in Indian patients with coronary arterial disease.

A detailed cross-sectional analysis of total cholesterol and triglyceride levels was studied in 1066 consecutive male patients who underwent selective coronary arteriography in our centre to confirm or exclude coronary arterial disease. There were 877 cases of coronary arterial disease and 189 patients with normal coronary arteries. Besides descriptive statistics of lipid levels in different age groups, percentile distribution was studied. Association characteristics between lipids and other risk factors was studied by multiple regression analysis. Relative risk of lipids, controlling for the confounding variable of age as well as weight was obtained using the Mantel Haenszel chi square procedure. Results revealed the occurrence of coronary artery disease with low lipid levels in our population. The 50th percentile for total cholesterol was 205 mg/dl for the cases and 186 mg/dl for controls, while for triglycerides it was 158 mg/dl for cases and 140 mg/dl for controls. Multiple regression analysis of smoking, positive family history, diabetes, hypertension, weight and age contributed a low R square value of 2.49% for cholesterol and 4.22% for triglycerides in the cases and controls. The Mantel Haenszel chi square test procedure confirmed that low lipid levels could be seen irrespective of the age or weight of individuals. It is speculated that other factors which may include ageing, metabolic or immunologic components yet to be ascertained, could contribute additionally, to atherosclerotic coronary arterial disease in our population.