Associations between serum lipoprotein(a) levels and the severity of coronary and aortic atherosclerosis

Abstract To elucidate the associations between Lp(a) levels and coronary and aortic atherosclerosis, we performed aortic MRI in 143 patients undergoing coronary angiography. Severity of aortic atherosclerosis was represented as plaque scores. Of the 143 patients, 104 had coronary artery disease (CAD). Thoracic and abdominal aortic plaques were found in 89 and 131 patients. Lp(a) levels increased stepwise with the number of stenotic coronary vessels: 15.7 (CAD(−)), 21.2 (1-vessel), 21.4 (2-vessel), and 22.9 mg/dl (3-vessel) ( P P  = NS), whereas Lp(a) increased stepwise with quartiles of abdominal plaques: 17.1, 19.2, 19.1, and 24.0 mg/dl ( P