Serum Choleterol and the Risk of Acute Myocardial Infarction

pp 267-276

Abstract

Objective

To examine the relationship between levels of cholesterol and acute myocardial infarction.

Design

Case control study.

Setting

Medical centers from Argentina.

Method

This study was conducted in Argentina between1991 and 1994 and enrolled 1060 cases of newly diagnosed acute myocardial infarction and 1071 controls hospitalized for acute conditions not related to known or suspected risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Results

Relative to the lowest quintile of serum cholesterol, the relative risk for subsequent quintiles were formen: 1.10, 1.39, 2.18 and 3.01 (X2 trend = 82.71; p <0.001) and for women: 1.30, 2.83, 2.83, 3.75 (X2trend= 27.65; p < 0.001). For all the variables taken into account, the relative risks increased from lowest to the highest quintiles of serum cholesterol. There was statistically significant interaction between serum cholesterol and hypertension, diabetes and cigarette smoking.

Conclusion

Serum cholesterol is an independent and important risk factor for acute myocardial infarction. This is a possitive and continuous relationship. There is a multiplicative effect on relative risks between serum cholesterol and hypertension, diabetes and cigarette smoking.