New research suggests that doctors could accurately predict their elderly male patients’ risk of stroke and death simply by measuring levels of a protein known as lipoprotein-a, which carries cholesterol around the body. Dr Abraham A Ariyo from HeartMasters in Dallas, Texas, and colleagues measured the blood lipoprotein-a levels of 2375 women and 1597 men aged 65 or older, and followed them for seven years. Results showed that men with the highest levels of lipoprotein-a were three times more likely to experience a stroke during the study than men with the lowest levels. Furthermore, these men were 76% more likely to die than those with the lowest levels of the blood protein. No similar association was seen in women.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: N Engl J Med 2003;349:2108-2115.
