Lipid Levels and Stroke

In a large meta-analysis, non-HDL cholesterol was associated with risk for ischemic but not hemorrhagic stroke; triglycerides, HDL, and apolipoproteins were not associated with stroke risk.

For decades, lipid levels have been accepted as risk factors for atherosclerotic heart disease, but the relative importance of different lipid parameters and their association with ischemic stroke has been controversial, despite evidence that statin therapy reduces the risk for recurrent stroke. This controversy stems from the heterogeneity of ischemic stroke, which is caused primarily by nonatherosclerotic mechanisms.

This individual-patient meta-analysis, aimed at providing clear estimates of the vascular risks associated with lipid levels, included 68 prospective studies with data on 302,430 people without vascular disease at baseline; of these, 32 studies provided data on ischemic stroke outcomes in more than 173,000 people. Non-HDL chol…

Reviewing Author

Mitchell S. V. Elkind, MD, MS

Lipid Levels and Stroke

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Reviewing Author