Investigations HDL-Cholesterol and Fibrinogen Levels and Associations with Some Risk Factors in the Population of the Marmara Region

The Marmara cohort of the Turkish Risk Factor Survey was followed up in 1997 in regard to previously studied risk parameters and -newly- plasma HDL-cholesterol, fibrinogen and waist/hip ratio. 730 subjects were examined including 212 ind individuals randomly selected to replace in part those lost to follow-up. HDL-cholesterol concentrations were measured by a Reflotron apparatus, validated in part in a reference laboratory and were accordingly adjusted. Fibrinogen was measured by a modified Clauss method. When stratified for sex and age, mean HDL-cholesterol levels were found to be 38 mg/dl in men and 45 mg/dl in women, irrespective of significant changes with age. Levels were low in both genders and were in agreement with those obtained at the Turkish Heart Study. Concentrations of HDL-cholesterol were significantly correlated in men to waist/hip ratio (r=0.37) and body mass index (r=0.34) and in women with diastolic pressure, in addition to being inversely associated with plasma triglycerides (r=0.43) and systolic blood pressure (r=0.50). Plasma fibrinogen appeared to be independent of age in women exhibiting a mean level of 2.59 g/l and was consistently higher than levels in men till age 70. These levels rose in men with age and were correlated (r=0.40) with waist/hip ratio while in women significant associations existed with diastolic pressure as well as inversely with systolic pressure (r=0. 13) and plasma triglycerides (r=0.45). Moreover, instead of an anticipated inverse relation, fibrinogen and HDL-cholesterol levels displayed a modest but direct correlation between each other (r=0.27 and 0.4 1, in men and women, respectively).