New measure trumps HDL levels in protecting against heart disease
The discovery that high levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (the 'good cholesterol') is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease has fostered intensive research to modify HDL levels for therapeutic gain. However, recent findings have called into question the notion that pharmacologic increases in HDL cholesterol levels are necessarily beneficial to patients. Now, a new study from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine shows that a different metric, a measure of HDL function called cholesterol efflux capacity, is more closely associated with protection against heart disease than HDL cholesterol levels themselves. Findings from the study could lead to new therapeutic interventions in the fight against heart disease. The new research will be published in the January 13 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine...