Risk variables for coronary artery disease in Asian Indians

No large study from India has addressed the association of risk variables with coronary artery disease (CAD) in angiographically proved cases. In this study, we analyzed the association of anthropometric variables, lipoproteins, and coagulation parameters with CAD in those cases proved by coronary angiography. A cross-sectional study of 447 men greater than or equal to 25 years old, classified as with CAD or without CAD, was performed. Men treated with aspirin or lipid-lowering agents, and those with renal, hepatic, or thyroid diseases were excluded. Associations of these variables with CAD were evaluated by univariate and multiple logistic regression analyses. The effect of diabetes on the CAD profile was also analyzed. Prevalences of diabetes and hypertension were significantly higher among those with CAD (p < 0.001 for both). Lipid profile abnormalities, except lipoprotein (Lp(a)), were associated with CAD. Antibodies to oxidized low-density lipoprotein wets higher in patients with CAD. Fibrinogen levels were higher in CAD, but plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 did not show on association with CAD. In the multiple logistic regression analysis, age, body mass index, very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, and fibrinogen showed significant independent association with CAD. Several lipid abnormalities were associated with CAD in Asian Indians, but no significant association was seen with Lp(a) levels. (C) 2001 by Excerpta Medico, Inc.