Five years of lipoprotein apheresis for Lp(a)-associated disease: the German prospective follow-up (Roeseler et al., ATVB 2016)

Original title: Lipoprotein Apheresis for Lipoprotein(a)-Associated Cardiovascular Disease: Prospective 5 Years of Follow-Up and Apolipoprotein(a) Characterization

Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol · 1 September 2016 · 7

Roeseler E, Julius U, Heigl F, Spitthoever R, Heutling D, Breitenberger P, Leebmann J, Lehmacher W, Kamstrup PR, Nordestgaard BG, Maerz W, Noureen A et al.

The 170-patient German cohort followed for five years: a single apheresis session lowered Lp(a) (mean 108 mg/dL) by 68 percent, and the mean annual cardiovascular event rate fell from 0.58 in the two years before regular apheresis to 0.11 thereafter, sustained over five years; 95 percent of these clinically selected patients carried at least one small apo(a) isoform. Confirms the durability of the Leebmann 2013 signal, again without a randomised control.

Original abstract

Objective: Lipoprotein(a)-hyperlipoproteinemia (Lp(a)-HLP) along with progressive cardiovascular disease has been approved as indication for regular lipoprotein apheresis (LA) in Germany since 2008. We aimed to study the long-term preventive effect of LA and to assess hypothetical clinical correlations of apolipoprotein(a) (apo(a)) by analyzing genotypes and phenotypes.

Approach And Results: This prospective observational multicenter study included 170 patients with Lp(a)-HLP and progressive cardiovascular disease (48.9 years median age at diagnosis) despite other cardiovascular risk factors, including low-density lipoprotein cholesterol had maximally been treated (mean baseline low-density lipoprotein cholesterol: measured, 2.56 mmol/L [98.9 mg/dL] and corrected, 1.72 mmol/L [66.3 mg/dL]). Patients were prospectively investigated during a 5-year period about annual incidence rates of cardiovascular events. In addition, apo(a) isoforms and polymorphisms at the apo(a) gene (LPA) were characterized. One hundred fifty-four patients (90.6%) completed 5 years of follow-up. Mean Lp(a) concentration before commencing regular LA was 108.1 mg/dL. This was reduced by a single LA treatment by 68.1% on average. Significant decline of the mean annual cardiovascular event rate was observed from 0.58±0.53 2 years before regular LA to 0.11±0.15 thereafter (P<0.0001); 95.3% of patients expressed at least 1 small apo(a) isoform. Small apo(a) isoform (35.2%) carrying phenotypes were not tagged by single-nucleotide polymorphisms rs10455872 or rs3798220.

Conclusions: Results of 5 years of prospective follow-up confirm that LA has a lasting effect on prevention of cardiovascular events in patients with Lp(a)-HLP. Patients clinically selected by progressive cardiovascular disease were characterized by a highly frequent expression of small apo(a) isoforms. Only Lp(a) concentration seemed to comprehensively reflect Lp(a)-associated cardiovascular risk, however.

Summary written by lp-a.org from the published abstract; figures as published. Page updated 17 August 2026. Methods.