Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The current way to assess the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is to measure conventional lipid and lipoprotein cholesterol fractions. Despite the success of statin treatment, residual cardiovascular risk remains high. Therefore, the value of extensive serum apolipoprotein (apo) profiling to assess the risk of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) in patients with STEMI was investigated in a case-control design. METHODS AND RESULTS: Serum apo levels were measured using liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry in 299 healthy individuals and 220 patients with STEMI. First, the association of apo profiles in baseline samples with risk of STEMI was examined, and second, the association of apo profiles at baseline with risk of recurrent MACE in patients with STEMI in a longitudinal study design was studied. High baseline (> 1.25 g/L) apoA1 levels were associated with a decreased risk of STEMI [odds ratio (OR) 0.17; 95% CI 0.11-0.26], whereas high apoB (> 1.00 g/L) levels (OR 2.17; 95% CI 1.40-3.36) and apoB/apoA1 ratio (OR per 1 SD (OR/SD): 2.16; 95% CI 1.76-2.65) were associated with an increased risk. Very-low-density-lipoprotein (VLDL)-associated apos gave conflicting results. Neither conventional lipid levels nor apo levels were associated with MACE in the STEMI group. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, apoA1, apoB, and apoB/apoA1 were strongly associated with risk of STEMI. No clear relation between VLDL-associated apos and the risk of STEMI was found. Neither baseline serum apos nor lipids predicted MACE in statin-treated patients during long-term follow-up after a first STEMI.