Hanyang Med Rev.  2006 May;26(2):16-22.

Risk Factor and Prevention of Coronary Artery Disease

• Park JB

Abstract

Atherosclerosis is characterized by a long period of silent disease progression, allowing early diagnosis and the potential of early therapeutic intervention. From an epidemiological perspective, a risk factor of atherosclerosis is a characteristic of an individual that appears early in life and is associated with an increased risk of developing future cardiovascular disease (CVD), particularly coronary artery disease. The risk factor can be an acquired behavior, an inherited trait, or a laboratory measure, such as cholesterol or recently high sensitivity C-reactive protein. Some risk factors, such as dyslipidemia and hypertension, are modifiable and clinical trials have shown that lowering these factors reduces vascular morbidity and mortality. Here, the epidemiological evidence of underlying risk factors for atherosclerosis with some evidence in Koreans will be reviewed into 2 parts; 1) the conventional risk factors of smoking, hypertension, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance and diabetes, physical activity, and obesity as well as general strategies for reducing risk related to these disorders, 2) a series of novel atherosclerotic risk factors, including high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and other markers of inflammation, homocysteine, and lipoprotein(a).

Keyword

Coronary artery disease; Prevention; Risk factor; Atherosclerosis

MeSH Terms

Atherosclerosis
C-Reactive Protein
Cardiovascular Diseases
Cholesterol
Coronary Artery Disease*
Coronary Vessels*
Disease Progression
Dyslipidemias
Early Diagnosis
Homocysteine
Hypertension
Inflammation
Insulin Resistance
Lipoprotein(a)
Mortality
Motor Activity
Obesity
Risk Factors*
Smoke
Smoking
C-Reactive Protein
Cholesterol
Homocysteine
Lipoprotein(a)
Smoke