Ten-Year Survival in 75-Year-Old Men and Women: Predictive Ability of Total Cholesterol, HDL-C, and LDL-C

Objective. The purpose of this study was to investigate prognostic impact of cholesterol and its subfractions among 75-year-old people from the general population. Methods and Results. The study comprised a random sample (222 women and 210 men) from the general population (participation rate 70%). During 10-year follow-up, 19% of women and 35% of men experienced a major cardiovascular event (MCVE). The all-cause mortality was 29% for women and 47% for men. After adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors, a low level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was significantly associated with MCVE (P = .006) and mortality (P = .011) in men but not in women. The prognostic sex disparity was nearly significant (P = .051 for MCVE and .067 for mortality). The associations of adjusted HDL-C to MCVE and mortality were unchanged after excluding individuals with prevalent stroke or MI. Total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were not significantly related to prognosis in either sex. Main Conclusions. HDL-C was associated with dismal prognosis in men but not in women. Elderly men with HDL-C <40 mg/dL deserve particular attention for cardiovascular prevention.