Triglycerides linked to stroke risk

[Guest guest]

Thanks for thatinfo, went to the dr tues. trigl was 351/ I am now on fish,

chicken and turkey. I have already started losing weight and my daughter and

I are joining the ymca I figure I can do water arobics.

Indy Judy

[Guest guest]

Triglycerides linked to stroke risk

By Merritt McKinney

NEW YORK, Dec 10 (Reuters Health) - For the first time, researchers have

linked high levels of blood fats called triglycerides to an increased

risk of stroke.

The findings should encourage physicians to pay closer attention to

triglyceride levels, the lead author of a new study on triglycerides and

the risk of stroke told Reuters Health.

" More effective screening and detection of high blood triglycerides and

treatments to modify this stroke risk factor could further reduce the

clinical and public health burdens of stroke, " said Dr. Tanne, of

Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, Israel.

In the past few years, doctors have learned that drugs that lower blood

fats, or lipids, such as cholesterol can also prevent strokes, Tanne

told Reuters Health. The precise relationship between blood fats,

particularly triglycerides, and stroke has not been clear, however, he

said.

In the study, Tanne and his colleagues followed more than 11,000

patients who had coronary heart disease but had never had a stroke or a

transient ischemic attack (TIA), or " mini-stroke. " Most of the

participants in the study were men.

Over the course of six to eight years, 487 individuals had a stroke or a

TIA, Tanne and his colleagues report. On average, people who had a

stroke or TIA had higher levels of triglycerides and lower levels of HDL

cholesterol, the good variety of the blood fat, he and his colleagues

report in the December 11th issue of Circulation: Journal of the

American Heart Association.

When the researchers accounted for other risk factors for stroke, people

with more than 200 milligrams (mg) of triglycerides per deciliter (dl)

of blood were nearly 30% more likely to have an ischemic stroke or TIA

than people with lower levels of the blood fats.

Ischemic strokes, which occur when a clot or narrowed artery cuts off

the brain's blood supply, account for about 80% of all strokes. The

other 20% are due to broken blood vessels in the brain.

" We have shown that high triglycerides and the low levels of HDL, or

" good, " cholesterol that usually coexist are important risk factors for

the main type of stroke, called ischemic stroke, among patients with

heart disease, " Tanne said.

Based on the findings, the Israeli researcher said that triglycerides

should also be used to identify people at risk for ischemic stroke.

Triglycerides already are measured along with other blood fats, or

lipids, Tanne said, but " until now were not given sufficient attention

for stroke prevention. "

Tanne said people can lower their triglyceride level by making lifestyle

changes such as eating a low-fat diet, losing weight and exercising

regularly. Several cholesterol-lowering drugs also can reduce levels of

triglycerides, he said.

" More studies are needed, however, to find out which lipid-lowering

drugs or drug combination will best prevent strokes among individuals

with high blood triglycerides, " he said.

The American Heart Association guidelines advise keeping triglyceride

levels below 150 mg/dL. Levels from 150 mg/dL to 199 mg/dL are

considered borderline high and from 200 mg/dL to 499 mg/dL are

considered high. More than 500 mg/dL of triglycerides is considered very

high, according to the Dallas, Texas-based group.

SOURCE: Circulation 2001;104:2892-2897.