Takeaway
- Exposure to high lipid levels, specifically low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), total cholesterol and triglyceride (TG) levels, was associated with an increased risk for aortic stenosis.
- No significant association was observed between high lipid levels and risk for aortic or mitral regurgitation.
Why this matters
- Finding may help in clinical decision-making regarding lipid-lowering treatment which may contribute to curb the global epidemic of aortic stenosis.
Study design
- A multivariable Mendelian randomisation (MR) study evaluated data on 157 genetic variants that have shown association with plasma lipid levels in the Global Lipids Genetics Consortium genome-wide association study and genetic association with aortic stenosis using the data from the UK Biobank.
- Casual association between lipid parameters and aortic stenosis was evaluated using the 2-sample MR analysis.
- Funding: None disclosed.
Key results
- In the multivariable MR analysis, the risk for aortic stenosis was higher with per unit increase in:
- LDL-C (OR, 1.52 [95% CI, 1.22-1.90] per 0.98 mmol/L);
- High-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C; OR, 1.03 [95% CI, 0.80-1.31] per 0.41 mmol/L); and
- TG (OR, 1.38 [95% CI, 0.92-2.07] per 1 mmol/L).
- In the 2-sample MR analysis, each unit increase in the LDL-C (OR, 1.64 [95% CI, 1.28-2.11] per 0.98 mmol/L), HDL-C (OR, 1.82 [95% CI, 1.32-2.53] per 1.10 mmol/L) and TG (OR, 1.55 [95% CI, 1.20-2.00] per 1 mmol/L) was associated with an increased risk for aortic stenosis.
- No significant association was observed between any of the lipid parameters and aortic or mitral regurgitation.
Limitations
- Results may have limited generalisability.
References
References
