Prevalence of conventional risk factors and lipid profiles in patients with acute coronary syndrome and significant coronary disease.

BACKGROUND: Among patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), 80%-90% present at least one conventional risk factor. On the other hand, lipid profile modification after a cardiovascular event related to acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has been recognized. The prevalence of conventional risk factors and the lipid profile at the time of admission in patients with ACS and significant CAD (stenosis ≥50%) determined through coronary angiography is not well described.

METHODS: We studied 3,447 patients with a diagnosis of ACS and significant CAD with stenosis ≥50%, as shown o n angiography. We recorded the presence of conventional risk factors, including smoking, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes. In addition, we analyzed the lipid profiles within the first 24 hours of admission. We analyzed the studied population and compared findings according to sex.

RESULTS: Most patients (81.7%) were male. ST-elevation myocardial infarction was present in 51.3% of patients, and non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndrome was present in 48.7%. The most frequent risk factor was smoking, which was present in 68% of patients, followed by hypertension (57.8%), dyslipidemia (47.5%), and diabetes (37.7%). In women, the most frequent risk factors were hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia, whereas in men, smoking was the most frequent. We identified at least one risk factor in 95.7% of all patients, two or three risk factors in 62%, and four risk factors in 8.6% of patients. The lipid profile analysis revealed that 85.1% of patients had some type of dyslipidemia, and the most frequent was low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (68.6% of cases).

CONCLUSION: We found at least one conventional risk factor in 95.7% of patients with ACS and significant CAD. The lipid profile analysis revealed that two thirds of cases had low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels.