title: Coronary risk factors of angiographically assessed patients from Syria.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Predictors of coronary artery disease in an Arab population had not been defined well.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied 192 male patients with suspected coronary artery disease, who underwent catheterization. We defined definite coronary artery disease as > 50% stenosis in any of three vessels. The effects of age, obesity, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, and lipid fractions were assessed by means of univariate and multivariate regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Coronary artery disease was present in 153 men (80%) and absent from 39 men. Patients without coronary artery disease were slightly younger, thinner, smoked less, and had lower cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B levels than did those who had coronary artery disease. By stepwise regression analysis, the best discriminators were body mass index (P = 0.0004), age (P = 0.0005), smoking (P = 0.014) and the apolipoprotein B:A-I ratio (P = 0.041). The strongest Pearson correlation coefficients for coronary artery disease were the ratio of total: high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels (r = 0.26), the apolipoprotein B:A-I ratio (r = 0.26), and age (r = 0.25), all P < 0.0005.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this angiographically evaluated Syrian population, previously recognized, well-known risk factors appeared. Obesity, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, and elevated lipid levels are all amenable to correction. Syria should adopt the same secondary prevention strategies as those currently being practiced by non-Arab countries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, College of Pharmacy, Assad University of Damascus, Syria.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: al-Kateb
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zarzzour
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shameah
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Juoma
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018912:Arabs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017023:Coronary Angiography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000097:blood / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000208:ethnology*; D005215:Fasting / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D013593:Syria / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D008055:Lipids