Association between Small Dense Low-Density Lipoproteins and High-Density Phospolipid Content in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease with or without Diabetes

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the phospholipid profile in total plasma, non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and HDL fractions. We tried to correlate the phospholipid profile to low-density lipoprotein (LDL) size, as reflected by cholesterol content in each LDL subclass. METHODS: We measured small dense LDL-C levels after heparin-magnesium precipitation and measured high-density lipoprotein phospholipid (HDL-P) levels using a colorimetric enzymatic method. RESULTS: The correlation of the phospholipid profile to small dense LDL-C (sdLDL-C) in patients with coronary problems showed a negative association between small dense low-density lipoprotein (sdLDL) and HDL-P (r = -0.73; P = .02). Moreover, a strong positive correlation was detected between TG and the ratio HDL-P/HDL-C (r = 0.83; P <.001). CONCLUSIONS: HDL phospholipid has an antiatherogenic effect in coronary artery disease with or without diabetes. Further, large LDL modulation seems to be associated with diabetes rather than coronaropathy.