PATTERN AND PREVALENCE OF DYSLIPIDEMIA AND OTHER CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS AMONG THE VARIOUS ETHNIC GROUPS OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Background: Dyslipidemia has for long been associated with the development of complications such as cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and is an important component of the metabolic syndrome. In addition, differences in the pattern of lipid derangements have been reported especially between people of the African descent and their counterpart of the South Asian descent.

Aim: To study the pattern and prevalence of dyslipidemia and other cardiovascular risk factors among the various ethnic groups in Trinidad and Tobago.

Materials and Methods: This study comprises of 968 subjects and 10mL of blood sample was collected from each after an overnight fasting of 10–12 hours. Plasma and sera were used to analyse glucose, total cholesterol, triglycerides, high density cholesterol (HDL-C), very low density lipoprotein (VLDL), and low density lipoprotein (LDL). Anthropometric indices such as height, weight, waist circumference, age, gender, education, occupation, ethnicity and medical history including medications were obtained from each subject.

Results: There were differences in body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure, blood glucose, triglycerides and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol amongst the various ethnic groups (p < 0.05). However, levels of HDL-C were similar among the various ethnicities although patients of the South Asian descent tend to have a trend towards none-significantly higher levels of HDL-C compared with other ethnic groups (p > 0.05).

Conclusion: The study has emphasized the well-established important disparity in lipid profiles amongst the people of various ethnic groups especially amongst patients with chronic noncommunicable disease (CNCD) in Trinidad and Tobago.