Air Force/Texas Coronary Atherosclerosis Prevention Study (AFCAPS/TexCAPS): baseline characteristics and comparison with USA population.
BACKGROUND
Results of the Air Force/Texas Coronary Atherosclerosis Prevention Study (AFCAPS/TexCAPS) demonstrated that treatment with lovastatin, in addition to modifications of diet and lifestyle, reduced the rate of first acute major coronary events compared with placebo in a cohort that included participants with average to mildly elevated total levels of cholesterol, and below average levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, women, and elderly subjects.


OBJECTIVE
To describe the baseline characteristics of the study's cohort.


METHODS
This was a double-blind, placebo-controlled, primary-prevention trial in which Americans with average to mildly elevated total levels of cholesterol [4.65-6.83 mmol/l (180-264 mg/dl)] and no clinical evidence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease were randomly allocated either 20-40 mg/day lovastatin or placebo in addition to a low-saturated fat, low-cholesterol diet. Baseline characteristics of the study cohort are described, and the characteristics of a USA reference population based upon NHANES III data are provided for comparison.


RESULTS
The study includes 5608 men (85%) and 997 women (15%) with mean total cholesterol level 5.71 +/- 0.54 mmol/l (221 +/- 21 mg/dl), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level 3.88 +/- 0.44 mmol/l (150 +/- 17 mg/dl), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol 0.96 +/- 0.15 mmol/l (37 +/- 6 mg/dl), and median triglyceride level 1.78 +/- 0.86 mmol/l (158 +/- 76 mg/dl). The mean age is 58 years (ranges 45-73 years for men and 55- 73 years for women). The participants are 89% white, 7% Hispanic, and 3% black.


CONCLUSIONS
Results from AFCAPS/TexCAPS will be applicable to large segments of populations; in the USA alone, eight million share the demographic and baseline-lipid-level characteristics of the study cohort.
Clearfield
M
M
University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, USA.
Whitney
E J
EJ
Weis
S
S
Downs
J R
JR
Shapiro
D R
DR
Stein
E A
EA
Watson
D J
DJ
Langendörfer
A
A
Beere
P A
PA
Stamler
J
J
Gotto
A M
AM
D000368:Aged; D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D018752:Diet, Fat-Restricted; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008148:Lovastatin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015995:Prevalence; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology
D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents; D002784:Cholesterol; D008148:Lovastatin