Partial ileal bypass in treatment of familial hypercholesterolaemia.

The effects of partial ileal bypass have been studied in 7 patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia. By the seventh to ninth postoperative day there was a significant fall in plasma cholesterol of 42.8% compared with levels at initial presentation. Thereafter, plasma levels of cholesterol rose by varying degrees, but had stabilized by 3 months with average values 29.5% lower than pretreatment. Debilitating diarrhoea or severe weight loss were not troublesome features of the operation in most patients.