Gómez-Belda Ana, Rodilla Enrique, Albert Amparo, García Luis, González Carmen, Pascual José M
Unidad de Hipertensión Arterial y Riesgo Cardiovascular. Servicio de Medicina Interna. Hospital de Sagunto. Sagunto. Valencia. Spain.
Med Clin (Barc). 2003 Oct 25;121(14):527-31. doi: 10.1016/s0025-7753(03)74008-1.
Our goal was to determine the number of patients who achieve low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) targets according to new guidelines.
Descriptive and transversal study of patients from a cardiovascular clinic. LDL-c was calculated and targets were established according the NCEP-ATP III.
1,811 patients (46% males, 54% females) were studied. 35% of these were high-risk patients (group 1: coronary risk > 20% at 10 years), 19% were intermediate-risk patients (group 2: coronary risk 10-20% at 10 years) and 46% were low-risk patients (group 3: coronary risk < 10% at 10 years). Overall, 58% of patients achieved target LDL-c levels, yet success rates were 26% among group 1 patients, 51% among group 2 patients, and 86% among group 3 patients (p = 0.001, for differences between groups). Statin treatment was significantly related to achieving target LDL-c levels in group 1 patients (OR = 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2-2.4; p = 0.007). In group 1.41% of patients had LDL-c levels > 130 mg/dl without receiving lipid-lowering drugs.
Although an overall 58% patients achieve target LDL-C levels, only one of four high-risk patients have LDL-c levels < 100 mg/dl, and statin treatment is a determining factor to achieve this goal. These findings indicate that a more aggressive treatment with statins is needed in secondary prevention.
