TREATING HYPERLIPIDEMIA IN THE ELDERLY

Background: Determination of the effects of dietary modification and h yperlipidemic medications in the elderly (> sixty-five years of age) p atient has not been significantly investigated to date despite knowled ge that elevated cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) levels increas e the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: Twenty-seven ind ividuals were placed into one of three treatment groups and longitudin ally followed up to examine the effects of diet and hyperlipidemic med ications on TC and TG levels. Group 1 (n = 14) received neither dietar y nor drug therapy. Group 2 (n = 9) received dietary counseling withou t concomitant hyperlipidemic medications. Subjects in group 3 (n = 4) underwent dietary instruction for six months and hyperlipidemic medica tion(s) for eighteen months. Results: Subjects in group 1 demonstrated a statistical increase in TC (P less than or equal to 0.001) during t he study. Patients in groups 2 (P less than or equal to 0.001) and 3 ( P less than or equal to 0.05) demonstrated statistical improvement in TC reduction during dietary counseling. The effect on TC was blunted i n group 3 after dietary counseling was discontinued. Reductions in TG levels were significant (P less than or equal to 0.001) only for patie nts in group 2. Conclusion: Elderly individuals were able to significa ntly reduce both TC and TG levels by dietary modification alone. Minim al improvement was seen with the addition of hyperlipidemic medication s.