Distribution of serum lipoprotein(a) level and its association with other risk factors in apparently healthy Korean

Background and Objectives: Recent studies have demonstrated that lipoprotein (a) [Lp (a)] plays an important role in atherothrombogenesis and to be associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Subjects and Methods: We evaluated the distribution of Lp (a) and its association with cardiovascular risk factors, by conducting a cross sectional survey of 14,516 apparently healthy Koreans. The study group consisted of 8,007 men and 6,509 women, aged 20 years and over. Results: The mean, medium and 75th percentile Lp (a) levels were 20.1, 13.2 and 23.8 mg/dL, respectively. The distribution of Lp (a) was highly skewed toward a lower level. The Lp (a) level was positively associated with age (p < 0.001) and low density lipoprotein (LDL) (p < 0.001). The body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.006), log (triglyceride) (p < 0.001) and alcohol consumption more than 3 times per week (p < 0.047) were inversely related to the Lp (a) level. However, no relationship was seen with smoking, gender, exercise, homeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and high sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP). Conclusion: The Lp (a) level was positively associated with age and low density lipoprotein (LDL). The body mass index (BMI) and log (triglyceride) were inversely related to the Lp (a) level. However, the association between Lp (a) and cardiovascular disease in the general Korean population should be confirmed via large scale prospective cohort studies.