Affiliation:
1. Centre for Applied Science, Belfast Metropolitan College, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Abstract
AbstractHypercholesterolemia is characterized by serum cholesterol levels greater than 5 mmol per L. However, the distribution of cholesterol among lipoprotein classes has a significant bearing on diagnosis: high–low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol suggests familial hypercholesterolemia, whereas high–high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol is associated with hyperalphalipoproteinemia. On routine screening, a 23-year-old man presented with a total cholesterol level of 7.6 mmol per L but was subsequently found to have an HDL cholesterol level of 5.6 mmol per L. The clinical picture was confounded by his use of red yeast rice extract, a popular health supplement with hypolipidemic effects. In this case individual, the use of red yeast rice extract caused a hyperlipidemic state, ostensibly through downregulation of cholesteryl ester transfer protein. This case emphasizes the extended role of laboratory medicine in complex cases of hyperlipidemia.
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Subject
Biochemistry (medical),Clinical Biochemistry
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