WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. – Onset of hyperlipidemia tends to occur earlier in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), compared with matched controls, according to new research. Among females and African Americans, the effect of MS on age of hyperlipidemia onset may be especially pronounced, said Diane Krill, PhD, professor of biological sciences at Point Park University, Pittsburgh, and colleagues.
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Many patients with MS have hyperlipidemia, and adverse lipid profiles correlate with physical and cognitive impairment in this population. “There is evidence of endothelial dysfunction and inflammation in both MS and hyperlipidemia, but the timing of onset of hyperlipidemia is not known,” the researchers said at the meeting held by the Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis.
To assess whether patients with MS have hyperlipidemia diagnosed at an earlier age, relative to matched controls, Dr. Krill and colleagues analyzed data from the Cleveland Clinic health system. They included in their analyses patients with at least two hyperlipidemia diagnoses and at least five encounters with a primary care physician. They matched each patient with MS to four patients without MS using variables such as birth year, sex, race, and year of first encounter. In all, the study included 669 patients with MS and 2,676 controls. The investigators examined age of hyperlipidemia onset using multivariable Cox proportional hazard models that adjusted for sex, race, smoking, and body mass index.
Patients with MS had a 20% increased risk for earlier onset of hyperlipidemia, relative to matched controls. The effect was greater among females (hazard ratio, 1.22) and African Americans (HR, 1.42). Patients with MS have earlier onset of hyperlipidemia “irrespective of the relationship with age of MS onset,” Dr. Krill and colleagues noted. “Additional research is warranted to further characterize the temporal relationships between MS and hyperlipidemia, as well as considerations for timing of disease-modifying therapies.”
The researchers had no relevant disclosures.
SOURCE: Krill D et al. ACTRIMS Forum 2020, Abstract P085.