Epidemiology of low HDL-cholesterol: results of studies and surveys
Service d'Endocrinologie Métabolique, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, 47, Boulevard de l'Hôpital, 75651 Paris, Cedex 13, France
Corresponding author. Tel: +33 1 42 17 78 49; fax: +33 1 42 17 78 65. E-mail address: eric.bruckert{at}psl.ap-hop-paris.fr
Low HDL-cholesterol is a risk factor for adverse cardiovascular outcomes independently of levels of LDL-cholesterol. Surveys in individual countries have revealed a substantial prevalence of low HDL-cholesterol, but the utility of data from these studies is limited by differences in study designs and patient populations. Accordingly, the Pan-European Survey of HDL-cholesterol set out to determine the prevalence of low HDL-cholesterol [<1.03 mmol/L (40 mg/dL) in men and <1.29 mmol/L (50 mg/dL) in women] in a large (n=8545) population of patients receiving treatment for dyslipidaemia under the care of specialist physicians in 11 European countries. Low HDL-cholesterol was present in 33% of men and 40% of women, with very low HDL-cholesterol present in 14% (both genders combined). Hypertriglyceridaemia was present in 49% of men and 45% of women. Low HDL-cholesterol and hypertriglyceridaemia occurred in 22% of men and 25% of women. Low HDL-cholesterol is common among the European population of patients under treatment for dyslipidaemia and thus contributes importantly to overall cardiovascular risk. Interventions to increase HDL-cholesterol have been shown to inhibit atherosclerosis and to improve cardiovascular prognosis in high-risk study populations. Agents that increase HDL-cholesterol should be used in addition to statins, where necessary, to optimize the lipid profile.
Key Words: HDL-cholesterol • Epidemiology • Atherosclerosis • Cardiovascular risk • Dyslipidaemia • Prevalence