Serum lipoprotein(a) level as long-term predictor of cardiovascular mortality in a large sample of subjects in primary cardiovascular prevention: data from the Brisighella Heart Study

Background High lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] levels have been re-evaluated as an independent risk factor for atherosclerotic vascular diseases. Methods We assessed whether serum Lp(a) levels can significantly influence long-term survival in subjects with an equal general cardiovascular (CV) risk profile. We prospectively evaluated a sample of 1215 adult subjects from the Brisighella Heart Study cohort (M: 608; F: 607; aged 40â 69) who had no cardiovascular disease at enrolment. According to the CUORE project risk-charts (Italian-specific risk-charts), individuals were stratified into a lowâ (n = 865), an intermediateâ (n = 275) and a highâ (n = 75) cardiovascular risk groups. Kaplanâ Meier 25-year survival analysis was carried out examining apart each class of risk and the log-rank statistic was used to estimate, when statistically possible, the survival time of the subjects stratified into quartiles of Lp(a). Results Subjects at high and intermediate CV risk aged 56â 69 years (regardless of gender) and women aged 40â 55 years with a low CV risk profile who had lower Lp(a) levels showed a significant benefit on CV mortality (P