Hypercholesterolemia is a major risk factor for coronary artery disease. Other risk factors play a more important role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis in patients with low cholesterol level. We perform this study to evaluate the relative role of inflammation in stable angina patients without hypercholesterolemia.

Sixty seven stable angina patients without peripheral vascular disease were divided into two groups according to their LDL cholesterol level, group 1 with LDL cholesterol < 130mg/dl and group 2 with LDL cholesterol ≥130mg/dl. Patients with conditions that might change C-reactive protein(CRP) level, previous PTCA or CABG, history of acute coronary syndrome, on lipid lowering treatment and whose troponin T level was above the normal were excluded. Angiographic severity was evaluated by the Gensini and Jenkins scores.

There were no differences in age, gender, BMI, angiographic severity and incidence of major risk factors except hypertension. CRP(log CRP) was significantly higher in group 1(0.65mg/dl vs. 0.28mg/dl, p=0.002).

In stable angina patients without hypercholesterolemia, inflammation plays a more important role in the pathogenesis of coronary atherosclerosis than the patients with high cholesterol level.