title: Aortic compliance in young patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia.
abstract: 1. Aortic compliance and plasma lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured in 20 young patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia and in 20 age- and sex-matched control subjects. 2. Patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia had significantly higher plasma cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol and triacylglycerol levels than control subjects (P < 0.001, P < 0.001 and P < 0.005, respectively). The patients with familial hypercholesterolemia also had significantly more compliant (distensible) aortas than the control subjects (P < 0.001), a significant inverse correlation being observed between compliance and age (r = 0.73, P < 0.001) and between compliance and mean blood pressure (r = -0.60, P < 0.005). 3. When the effects of age and sex on aortic compliance were corrected for, the blood pressure effect disappeared, significant correlations being observed between normalized compliance and cholesterol (r = 0.50, P < 0.03), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (r = 0.54, P < 0.01), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (r = -0.44, P < 0.05), low-density lipoprotein-/high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio (r = 0.60, P < 0.0006) and duration of disease (r = 0.67, P < 0.002). Multivariate regression analysis showed that the low-density lipoprotein-/high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol ratio (P < 0.03) and duration of disease (P < 0.04) were the best predictors of normalized compliance. 4. We suggest that the measurement of aortic compliance in young patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia may potentially be a useful, non-invasive, research tool for assessing their susceptibility to atheroma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Chemical Pathology, United Medical School, University of London, Guy's Hospital, U.K.
authors.forename: E D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Lehmann
authors.forename: G F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Watts
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fatemi-Langroudi
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Gosling
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001011:Aorta / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D003187:Compliance; D005260:Female; D006579:Heterozygote; D006801:Humans; D006938:Hyperlipoproteinemia Type II / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D014655:Vascular Resistance / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D014280:Triglycerides; D002784:Cholesterol