Thirty-Year Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Among Healthy Women According to Clinical Thresholds of Lipoprotein(a)

Do elevated lipoprotein(a) levels according to clinical thresholds and percentiles predict long-term risk of cardiovascular disease among healthy women?In this cohort study among 27 748 healthy women followed up for nearly 30 years, lipoprotein(a) levels greater than 30 mg/dL or above the 75th percentile were associated with increasing risk of major cardiovascular events and coronary heart disease. Only levels greater than 120 mg/dL or above the 99th percentile were associated with increased risk of ischemic stroke and cardiovascular death.In this study, very high lipoprotein(a) levels were associated with 30-year risk of cardiovascular disease among healthy women; clinicians may consider lipoprotein(a) screening in the general population.

Corresponding Author: Ask Tybjærg Nordestgaard, MD, PhD, Division of Preventive Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, 900 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02215 (anordestgaard@mgh.harvard.edu).

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