Levels of lipoprotein(a) and plasma lipids in Spanish children aged from 4 to 18 years.

Increased plasma lipoprotein(a)-Lp(a)-levels are linked to a high risk of cardiovascular disease unrelated to other lipoproteins. It seems that Lp(a) values in childhood remain unaltered up to adulthood. In a randomly chosen population of 1970 children, aged from 4 to 18 years and living in a Spanish community, the following serum parameters were studied: total cholesterol, total triglycerides, Lp(a), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Mean Lp(a) serum values were 15.0 +/- 14.7 mg dl-1. No differences were seen between either sex in the first years of childhood. Of the studied children, 15.1% presented Lp(a) concentrations above 30 mg dl-1. A correlation between Lp(a) and total cholesterol concentrations, which disappeared when low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations were corrected according to cholesterol present in Lp(a), was observed.