Blood lipids and first-ever ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack in the Bezafibrate Infarction Prevention (BIP) Registry: high triglycerides constitute an independent risk factor

Abstract

Background: Despite unclear associations between blood lipids, including fractionated cholesterol and triglycerides, and stroke, recent evidence demonstrates that lipid-modifying agents decrease the risk of stroke in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD).

Methods and results: Patients with documented CHD who were screened for but not included in the Bezafibrate Infarction Prevention study and had no history of stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) (n=11 177) were followed up. At baseline, medical histories were obtained and blood lipids assessed at a central study laboratory. During a 6- to 8-year follow-up period, 941 patients were identified as having nonhemorrhagic cerebrovascular disease, of whom 487 had verified ischemic stroke (per clinical findings and brain CT) or TIA. Patients experiencing an ischemic stroke/TIA had higher mean levels of triglycerides, lower levels of HDL cholesterol, and lower percentages of cholesterol contained in the HDL cholesterol moiety (%HDL; P<0.01 for all). In a logistic regression model, the adjusted ORs for developing an ischemic stroke/TIA were 1.27 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.60) associated with triglycerides >200 mg/dL and 0.87 (95% CI 0.78 to 0.97) associated with a 5% decrease in %HDL. The increased risk associated with high triglycerides was found across subgroups of age, sex, patient characteristics, and cholesterol fractions.

Conclusions: High triglycerides constitute an independent risk factor for ischemic stroke/TIA across subgroups of age, sex, patient characteristics, and cholesterol fractions, whereas high %HDL was an independent protective factor among patients with CHD. These findings support the role of blood lipids, including triglycerides, as important modifiable stroke risk factors.