P. Fornengo et al., Low adherence of General Practitioners to National Cholesterol Education Program guidelines for the management of hyperlipidaemia, DIABET NUTR, 13(5), 2000, pp. 263-268
Aim of our study was to assess adherence to the National Cholesterol Educat
ion Program Adult-Treatment Panel II (NCEP-ATP II) in patients cared for by
General Practitioners (GPs) in an Italian community, The design of the wor
k was cross-sectional cohort study; the base was an unselected cohort of 11
68 patients cared for by GPs and screened at our lipid clinic in 1994-1995
in the Province of Turin (Italy), Blood samples were collected after 12-hr
fast to measure plasma levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-chol
esterol, glucose and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH). LDL-cholesterol was
calculated using Friedewald's formula, In patients with body mass index (B
MI) >30 kg/m(2), an oral glucose tolerance test was performed, Blood pressu
re was measured in all patients, and a baseline ECG or a stress test was pe
rformed in those with unknown cardiovascular disease (CVD), then they were
classified following the NCEP-ATP II criteria. Primary hyperlipidaemia acco
unted for 86.9% of the cohort with most patients requiring pharmacological
treatment; in 34.4% of the patients, LDL-cholesterol values were greater th
an or equal to 6.46 mmol/l (250 mg/dl) and in 23.7% with established CVD, L
DL-cholesterol levels were greater than or equal to 5.68 mmol/l (220 mg/dl)
, In only 7.3% of patients the NCEP treatment goals were achieved, with 1.3
% among those in secondary prevention, We observed great discrepancies betw
een clinical practice and international recommendations for the management
of hyperlipidaemia. Diab. Nutr. Metab. 13: 263-268, 2000. (C) 2000, Editric
e Kurtis.