Cardiology Letters 2020, 29(4):240-242

Is it important to reduce serum levels of Lp(a) in secondary prevention of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality?

Murín J¹, Bulas J¹, Wavruch M²

¹ I. interná klinika LFUK a UN Bratislava

² Ústav farmakológie a klinickej farmakológie LFUK, Bratislava, Slovenská republika

Reduction of serum lipids, mainly of LDL-Ch level, with lipid lowering treatments (statins, event with ezetimibe and PCSK9 inhibitors in special patients) reduces cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality. These days we want, in secondary CV prevention, to lower serum LDL-Ch levels even more and we also want to start with this treatment very much earlier. There are also other new serum lipids, and Lp(a) is one of them, and an association of its serum levels with CV atherosclerotic diseases was found. It is not a (bio)marker, but a risk factor. Up to now we have not had the possibility to reduce serum levels of Lp(a), but treatment with PCSK9 inhibitors recently documented not only a great reduction of serum levels of LDL-Ch but also serum levels of Lp(a): patients after acute coronary syndrome were treated with alirocumab (ODYSSEY OUTCOMES Study), there was great reduction of CV events and the reduction of serum levels of Lp(a) in patients in the highest quartile of these levels contributed to this benefit. In the near future we expect that examination of serum levels of Lp(a) will be important, mostly in patients with CV disease.

Keywords: Lp(a); cardiovascular atherosclerotic disease; PCSK9 inhibitors; reduction of CV morbidity

Published: April 1, 2020  Show citation