Healing and Early Afterload Reducing Therapy Trial - HEART

Description:

Characterization of dyslipidemia in single-institution series.

Hypothesis:

To characterize the different types of dyslipidemia in a large number of inpatients and outpatients from a single institution.

Study Design

Study Design:

Patients Screened: Not given
Patients Enrolled: >11,200
Female: 0

Patient Populations:

Inpatients and outpatients from the Department of Cardiology at the University of Vienna Hospital between 1994 and 1997.

Primary Endpoints:

Lipid levels

Principal Findings:

The study group consisted of more than 10,000 outpatients and 1200 inpatients from the Department of Cardiology at the University of Vienna Hospital between 1994 and 1997. Consecutive patients were identified with the following diagnoses: coronary artery disease (40%), valvular disease (21%), arrhythmia (5%), hypertension (6%), cardiomyopathy (4%), any combination of the above (18%), and other (6%).

The types of dyslipidemia detected were as follows: isolated hypercholesteroledemia (44%), combined (elevated cholesterol and triglycerides) hyperlipidemia (44%), isolated hypertriglyceridemia (5%), and low LDL (7%).

Total cholesterol was > 200 mg/dl in 73% of the patients, > 250 mg/dl in 34% of the patients, and > 300 mg/dl in 12% of the patients. Triglyceride values were > 200 in 39% and > 300 in 14%. LDL was > 150 in 75% and > 200 in 42%. HDL was < 50 in 69% and < 40 in 40%.

Interpretation:

The Vienna HEART study group has concluded that hypercholesteroledemia and combined hyperlipidemia are the most common dyslipidemias in cardiac patients, and that not only CAD patients, but also patients with valvular disease, arrhythmia, and cardiomyopathy suffer from dyslipidemia. The study group also concluded that more than 50% of the patients with dyslipidemia are not treated or are not treated sufficiently for their lipid disorder.

These broad demographic data allow estimation of the potential benefit and additional costs of applying current lipid-lowering guidelines to a Western European population.

References:

1. Eur Heart J 1998;19(Abstr Suppl):44. Preliminary results

Keywords: Coronary Artery Disease, Demography, Hypertriglyceridemia, Ramipril, Hypercholesterolemia, Cholesterol, Dyslipidemias, Cardiomyopathies, Heart Failure, Hypolipidemic Agents, Triglycerides, Hypertension


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