Indicadores de riesgo de aterosclerosis: evaluación mediante coronariografía en hombres no diabéticos con colesterol total igual o menor a 240 mg/dl / Index of atherosclerosis risk: evaluation by coronariography in non diabetic males with total cholesterol same or less than 240 mg/dl

We studied 90 male non diabetic patients aged between 40 and 65 years old with a total cholesterol of less than 240 mg/dl and not receiving cholesterol reducing drugs, that were subjected to elective coronary arteriography. Weight, height, blood pressure and smoking habits were recorded and a fsting blood sample was drawn to mesure total and HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, apoproteins A! and B, Lipoprotein(a) and plasma cholesteryl ester transfer activity. Arteriography disclosed coronary lesions in 54 patients. Compared to patients without lesions, the former had lower HDL cholesterol (34 ñ 9.8 vs 40.2 ñ 11.6 mg/dl) and higher total cholesterol/HDL, cholesterol and apoB/apoA1 ratios. No differences were found for lipoprotein(a) and plasma cholesteryl ester transfer activity. Unvariate analysis showed that low HDL cholesterol had the best predictive capacity for atherosclerosis