Lipid Profile levels on the second day of Acute Myocardial Infarction; is it the right time for estimation?

The main objective of this study is to note the changes that occur in the lipid profile levels following an acute myocardial ischemic attack and also correlate the changes in the lipid profile levels to the ischemic markers (Cardiac troponin-I and AST). The study included two groups; the first group consisted of 50 patients who were admitted to the hospital with Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI). The second group patients were normal healthy controls. Serum levels of Cardiac troponin-I (cTnI) and AST were assessed immediately and 12hrs fasting blood drawn for assessing the lipid profile levels. The patients with AMI had shown significant rise in cTnI and AST and the lipid parameters like High density lipoprotein (HDL) had shown significant decrease and the Very Low Density Lipoprotein (VLDL) and triglycerides (TG) had shown significant increase in cases compared to normal healthy individuals. Total Cholesterol (TC) and Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) in cases had shown decrease compare to controls but not significant statistically. The cTnI showed a significant negative correlation with decrease in the TC and HDL and LDL. The AST showed significant negative correlation with TC and LDL only. So routine diagnosis of lipid parameter for assessing the clinical risk should be reliably assessed within 24 hours and the lipid parameters assessed after 24 hours are invalid for risk assessment for patients with AMI. KEYWORDS: Acute Myocardial Infarction; Cardiac Troponin-I; Coronary Artery Diseases; Lipid Profile Internet Journal of Medical Update 2012 January;7(1):52-55