Table 1.
Clinical presentation of the 30 patients who met initial criteria for familial chylomicronemia syndromea
| Variable | Result |
|---|---|
| Male | 22 (73%) |
| Age at pancreatitis onsetb (years) | 37.3 ± 10.1 |
| Age at analysis (years) | 40.2 ± 10.1 |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 32.5 ± 4.5 |
| Hispanic | 14 (47%) |
| Family history of high triglycerides | 7 (23%) |
| Xanthoma | 1 (3%) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 27 (90%) |
| Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus | 21 (70%) |
| Diabetic ketoacidosis | 6 (20%) |
| Cholecystectomy | 13 (43%) |
| Spleen vein thrombosisc | 6 (29%) |
| Hepatic steatosisd | 20 (87%) |
| Alcohol abuse | 6 (20%) |
| Smoker (current) | 9 (30%) |
| Smoker (former) | 15 (50%) |
| Laboratory values | |
| Peak triglyceride in study period (mg/dL) | 2864.3 ± 1254.5 |
| Lowest triglyceride in study period (mg/dL) | 244 [170, 334] |
| High-density lipoprotein (mg/dL) | 30.3 ± 10.7 |
| Low-density lipoprotein (mg/dL) | 80.9 ± 43.9 |
| Total cholesterol (mg/dL) | 213 [164, 286] |
| Triglyceride/total cholesterol (at peak triglyceride) | 7.4 [5.0, 8.7] |
| Triglyceride/total cholesterol (most recent) | 3.3 [1.8, 4.8] |
| Hemoglobin (mg/dL) | 14.1 ± 1.8 |
| Medications | |
| Statin | 24 (80%) |
| Maximum statin | 7 (23%) |
| Fibrate | 28 (93%) |
| Omega-3 | 16 (53%) |
a
Twenty-four were clinically adjudicated as having familial chylomicronemia syndrome.
b
This was calculated with the first documented date in a patient's chart; these were not back-dated, even if a patient had pancreatitis as a child.
c
n = 21.
d
n = 23.