2012 Volume 28 Issue 5 Pages 274-281
Background: Recently, hypertriglyceridemia, especially in the non-fasting state, has been recognized as one of the most important atherosclerotic risk factors, in addition to hypercholesterolemia, in adults. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of measuring non-fasting triglyceride levels and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in schoolchildren.
Subjects and Methods: The subjects were 2,961 fouth and seventh grade schoolchildren in Takaoka City. They received the screening for preventing life-style related disease in 2010. Along with anthropometric measurements, blood samples obtained immediately after the school lunch were tested for total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), triglyceride (TG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC) levels. Some children were re-examined later during fasting, and their data were compared to those in the non-fasting state.
Results: There were no differences in the mean values of non-fasting TG between children in either grade or between the different sexes. The 50th percentile levels were 86 to 90 mg/dl, which are 20 to 30 mg/dl higher than the fasting levels in the nationwide reports. Non-fasting TG correlated with the values of body mass index, percentage overweight, atherosclerotic index, non-HDLC (TC-HDLC), and LDLC positively and with HDLC negatively. However, the subjects with high levels of non-fasting TG did not always have high levels of fasting TG. Directly measured LDLC highly correlated with non-HDLC (r = 0.98, p < 0.001).
Conclusions: Non-fasting TG levels are considered useful predictors of metabolic syndrome in schoolchildren. LDLC levels can be estimated from non-HDLC levels instead of measuring directly.
