LDL May Rise in Winter Months

Published: Mar 10, 2013
By Charlene Laino , Contributing Writer, MedPage Today
SAN FRANCISCO — LDL levels may increase during the winter months, according to the largest study to date to evaluate cholesterol levels by season.

Prospective evaluation of the lipid profiles of 227,359 patients showed that plasma LDL cholesterol levels over 130 mg/dL were 8% more prevalent during the winter than the summer months (P<0.001).

“Clinicians may want to monitor patients with borderline high cholesterol levels more frequently during the winter months,” said lead author Filipe A. Moura, MD, a PhD student at the State University of Campinas, Brazil.

The findings were presented here at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology.

Moura noted that many studies have shown that myocardial infarction, stroke, and other cardiovascular events are more prevent in the winter months. “So we decided to look at the risk factors for these events and see if they also fluctuate,” he told MedPage Today.

Full Story:  http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/ACC/37791