Association between Non-High-Density-Lipoprotein-Cholesterol Levels and the Prevalence of Asymptomatic Intracranial Arterial Stenosis

Objective The aim of this study was to assess the association between non-high-density-lipoprotein-cholesterol (non-HDL-C) and the prevalence of asymptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis (ICAS). Methods and Results The Asymptomatic Polyvascular Abnormalities Community (APAC) study is a prospective cohort study based on the Kailuan district (China) population. A total of 5351 eligible subjects, aged ≥40, and without history of stroke or myocardial infarction, were enrolled in this study. Transcranial Doppler Ultrasonography (TCD) was performed on all enrolled subjects for the evaluation of ICAS presence. Out of 5351 patients, 698 subjects showed evidence of ICAS (prevalence of 13.04%). Multivariate analysis showed that non-HDL-C is an independent indicator for the presence of ICAS (OR  = 1.15, 95%CI: 1.08 – 1.23), but with a gender difference (P for interaction<0.01): in men, non-HDL-C is an independent indicator for ICAS (multivariate-adjusted OR  = 1.28, 95%CI: 1.18–1.39), but not in women (multivariate-adjusted OR  = 1.03, 95%CI: 0.93–1.14). Subjects were divided into five subgroups based non-HDL-C levels and these levels correlated linearly with the prevalence of ICAS (P for trend <0.01). Compared with the first quintile, multivariate-adjusted OR (95%CI) of the second, third, fourth and fifth quintiles were: 1.05 (0.71–1.56), 1.33 (0.91–1.95), 1.83 (1.27–2.63), 2.48 (1.72–3.57), respectively. Conclusion Non-HDL-C is an independent predictor of ICAS prevalence in men but not in women, suggesting that non-HDL-C levels could be used as a surveillance factor in the primary prevention of ischemic stroke, especially in men.