Short-term incidence of dyslipidemia traits by urbanization and altitude: The CRONICAS Cohort Study

<ns3:p>Purpose This prospective study evaluated the association between living at different degrees of urbanization and altitude with five different incident dyslipidemia traits. Methods Using baseline (2010) and follow-up data (~2.4 years later) of Peruvian adults (aged ≥35 years) from the CRONICAS Cohort Study, the incidence of each trait was separately analyzed. Outcomes were hypercholesterolemia (≥200 mg/dL), high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-c] (≥130 mg/dL), low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-c] (males <40 mg/dL, females <50 mg/dL), high non-HDL-c (≥160 mg/dL), and hypertriglyceridemia (≥150 mg/dL). Urbanization (highly-urban, urban, semi-urban, rural) and altitude (low- and high-altitude) were the exposures. Results The incidence of hypertriglyceridemia, hypercholesterolemia, high LDL-c, high non-HDL-c, and low HDL-c was 22.0 (95% CI 19.6-24.5), 20.1 (95% CI 17.7-22.5), 15.3 (95% CI 13.2-17.3), 13.0 (95% CI 11.9-15.9) and 11.1 (95% CI 9.6-14.2) cases per 100 person-years, respectively. Compared to lowlanders, the incidence of low HDL-c among highlanders was over three folds higher (incidence rate ratio [IRR] 3.22; 95% CI 2.00-5.20) and that of high LDL-c was lower (IRR 0.65; 95% CI 0.45 – 0.94). Urbanization was not significantly associated with dyslipidemia. Conclusion Individuals living at high-altitude showed better LDL-c, but worse HDL-c profile expressed as lower incidence of high LDL-c and higher incidence of low HDL-c, respectively.</ns3:p>