PREVALENCE OF HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA IN BLACK PATIENTS OF A NEIGHBORHOOD HEALTH-CENTER

This article presents data on total cholesterol (TC) determinations ca rried out in black patients of an inner-city neighborhood health cente r. In the pediatric group (under age 18), TC determinations were carri ed out only in overweight children. In adults, they were performed rou tinely on all new admissions. During 1992, a total of 1158 TC determin ations were made, 385 in males and 773 in females. Age-related changes in mean TC were compared between black males and females, between mal es in our population and those in the general population, and between females in the two populations. Age-related changes in the proportion of cases in our population also were analyzed in the desirable, border line, and high-risk TC levels. Our objective was to determine if these data could account for the higher black mortality rates from coronary heart disease (CHD) than in the general population. The data show tha t mean TC levels and risk ratios are not substantially different in ou r population than in the general population. The differences in CHD mo rtality rates in the two populations, therefore, cannot be attributed to TC levels.