Survey of Serum Lipid Levels in Children from Parents with Premature Coronary Artery Disease

BackgroundLipid factors are currently considered to be the main agent responsible for cardiovascular risk in young individuals. Several epidemiological studies have shown that atherosclerosis begins in childhood. Therefore, there is a general consensus that the earlier the control begins, the better the results will be. Now there are many controversies regarding the early diagnosis of hyperlipidemia in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate serum lipid levels in children whose parents suffer from premature coronary artery disease (CAD). MethodsIn this cross sectional study, 76 children between 2-10 years old (38 children, whose parents had premature CAD, and 38 healthy, age and sex-matched controls, whose parents did not have premature CAD) were studied. The height, weight and body mass indices were similar in both groups. Serum lipid levels [total cholesterol, triglyceride, high density lipoprotein (HDL) and low density lipoprotein (LDL)] were measured after 10 hours fasting for 2 times, one week apart, and the mean of the two values was considered as the amount of each variable. Data were analyzed with Epi 6, and p<0.05 was considered as significant. ResultsResults showed that mean total cholesterol and LDL were 167±20 and 135±30mg/dL in the case group and 121±20mg/dL and 101±20mg/dL in the control group and that these differences were significant statistically. There were no differences between the two groups for triglycerides and HDL. In the case group, six cases had LDL levels greater than 160mg/dL, while there were no such cases in the control group. ConclusionWe therefore concluded that total cholesterol and LDL levels were higher in children of parents with premature CAD. This necessitates evaluation of serum lipid levels in children of parents with premature CAD (Iranian Heart Journal 2005; 6 (1,2): 6-10).