Relation between Lipoprotein(a) and Extension of Coronary Atherosclerotic Lesions

Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], together with other serum lipoproteins have an important role in coronary heart disease and peripheral atherosclerosis. In the present study, the relation between serum levels of Lp(a), lipids and other lipoproteins are compared with the severity of coronary lesions and the number of involved vessels.
In this study, 212 patients with suspected coronary artery disease undergoing coronary angiography and 200 apparently healthy individuals were used as the control group for comparative studies. Serum total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglycerides were measured by standard colorimetric methods. Low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) values were estimated immuno-turbidimetrically using Cobas autoanalyzer.
In the patient group, the increased serum level of Lp(a) was correlated with the number of involved vessels and the severity of coronary lesions. However, no significant correlation was found between serum levels of lipids and other lipoproteins with the number of involved vessels or with the severity of coronary lesions. Apart from the hypertension and history of myocardial infarction, no correlation was observed between serum levels of Lp(a) and other risk factors of cardiovascular disease.
It may be concluded that in spite of increase in serum levels of lipids and lipoproteins in atherosclerosis, Lp(a) is an independent risk factor. In this study, the relation observed between the serum levels of Lp(a) and the extension of atherosclerotic lesions can be regarded as an index for the relation of Lp(a) to the early, still clinically asymptomatic steps of the pathogenesis of coronary disease.