Type 3 hyperlipoproteinaemia.

Eighteen patients with type III hyperlipoproteinaemia, diagnosed on the basis of skin lesions, serum lipids, and lipoprotein electrophoresis, have been fully investigated over a period of 15 years. The incidence of coronary artery disease was only slightly increased, and was not increased at all among first-degree relatives. Peripheral occlusive arterial disease was probably more common. An increased incidence of carbohydrate intolerance was found in neither the patients nor their relatives. The effects of treatment on the skin were uniformly good.