Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Nov 24;22(1):501.
doi: 10.1186/s12872-022-02942-w.

Serum LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and the risk of carotid plaques: a longitudinal study

Zhuchao Wu #  1 , Xiaona Li #  2   3 , Qin Wen #  1 , Bilin Tao  1 , Beibei Qiu  1 , Qun Zhang  4   5 , Jianming Wang  6
Affiliations

Serum LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and the risk of carotid plaques: a longitudinal study

Zhuchao Wu et al. BMC Cardiovasc Disord. .

Abstract

Background: Dyslipidemia contributes to an increased risk of carotid atherosclerosis. However, the association between the ratio of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and carotid plaque formation has not been well documented. This study aims to assess the role of LDL-C/HDL-C in the risk of carotid plaque formation in a Chinese population.

Methods: We followed 2,191 participants who attended the annual routine health examination. Cox proportional hazards regression, restricted cubic spline (RCS), and subgroup analysis were applied to evaluate the association between the LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and carotid plaques. The hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to estimate the strength of the association.

Results: Among 2,191 participants, 388 had incident carotid plaques detected, with a median follow-up time of 1.05 years. Compared with subjects younger than 45 years, those aged 45 to 59 years (HR: 2.00, 95% CI: 1.55-2.58) and over 60 years (HR: 3.36, 95% CI: 2.47-4.58) had an increased risk of carotid plaque formation. Males (HR: 1.26, 95% CI: 1.01-1.56), diabetes (HR: 1.46, 95% CI: 1.06-2.01) and a high LDL-C/HDL-C ratio (HR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.07-1.38) were significantly linked with the occurrence of carotid plaques. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, we observed that a high LDL-C/HDL-C ratio promoted carotid plaque events (HR: 1.30, 95% CI: 1.12-1.50). The RCS analysis revealed a significant nonlinear association. The association was stronger among females (P-interaction < 0.05).

Conclusion: A high LDL-C/HDL-C ratio could accelerate the occurrence of carotid plaques. Older men with diabetes and dyslipidemia are the critical target population. Women may be more likely to benefit from lipid-lowering interventions and thus avoid carotid plaque formation.

Keywords: Carotid plaque; Lipid ratio; Longitudinal study; Serum lipids.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow chart of the selection process for eligible participants
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Association between the LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and the risk of new-onset carotid plaques
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Daghem M, Bing R, Fayad ZA, Dweck MR. Noninvasive Imaging to Assess Atherosclerotic Plaque Composition and Disease Activity: Coronary and Carotid Applications. JACC Cardiovasc Imaging. 2020;13(4):1055–68. doi: 10.1016/j.jcmg.2019.03.033. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Nicolaides AN, Panayiotou AG, Griffin M, Tyllis T, Bond D, Georgiou N, Kyriacou E, Avraamides C, Martin RM. Arterial Ultrasound Testing to Predict Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Events. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2022;79(20):1969–82. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2022.03.352. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Baradaran H, Eisenmenger LB, Hinckley PJ, de Havenon AH, Stoddard GJ, Treiman LS, Treiman GS, Parker DL, Scott McNally J. Optimal Carotid Plaque Features on Computed Tomography Angiography Associated With Ischemic Stroke. J Am Heart Assoc. 2021;10(5):e019462. doi: 10.1161/JAHA.120.019462. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kamtchum-Tatuene J, Noubiap JJ, Wilman AH, Saqqur M, Shuaib A, Jickling GC. Prevalence of High-risk Plaques and Risk of Stroke in Patients With Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis: A Meta-analysis. JAMA Neurol. 2020;77(12):1524–35. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mitchell C, Korcarz CE, Gepner AD, Kaufman JD, Post W, Tracy R, Gassett AJ, Ma N, McClelland RL, Stein JH. Ultrasound carotid plaque features, cardiovascular disease risk factors and events: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis. 2018;276:195–202. doi: 10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2018.06.005. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources