Lp(a) in the highest tertile raises stroke risk by 34% in a prospective cohort of 8500 Chinese adults (Atherosclerosis 2019)

Original title: Serum lipoprotein (a) is associated with increased risk of stroke in Chinese adults: A prospective study

Atherosclerosis · 26 July 2019 · 7

Zhang J, Du R, Peng K, Wu X, Hu C, Li M, Xu Y, Xu M, Wang S, Bi Y, Wang W, Lu J et al.

In a community-based prospective cohort of 8500 Chinese adults aged 40 or older from Jiading district, Shanghai, followed for a mean 5.1 years, 444 incident strokes occurred. Stroke incidence rose from 4.44% in the lowest Lp(a) tertile to 5.14% and 6.14% in the middle and highest tertiles (P for trend<0.05). Compared with the lowest tertile, the multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio for incident stroke in the highest Lp(a) tertile was 1.34 (95% CI 1.06-1.70). The findings show serum Lp(a) is associated with increased stroke risk in middle-aged and elderly Chinese adults.

Original abstract

Background And Aims: Epidemiological evidence on the association between elevated lipoprotein (a) (Lp (a)) with risk of stroke remains inconsistent. We aimed to investigate the association between serum Lp (a) level and the risk of stroke among middle-aged and elderly Chinese.

Methods: A community-based prospective cohort study of 8500 participants aged 40 years or older was conducted in Jiading district, Shanghai, China, in 2010. The incident strokes were documented at follow-up visit during 2014-2015.

Results: During a mean follow-up of 5.1 years, 444 incident cases of stroke occurred. The incidences of stroke were 4.44%, 5.14% and 6.14% from the lowest to the highest serum Lp (a) tertile, respectively. A significant association between serum Lp (a) tertile and the risk of incident stroke was observed (p for trend<0.05). Compared with individuals in the lowest tertile of serum Lp (a), the multivariable adjusted hazards ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for incident stroke in Lp (a) tertile 3 were 1.34 (1.06-1.70).

Conclusions: Serum Lp (a) concentration was associated with increased risk of incident stroke in Chinese adults.

Summary written by lp-a.org from the published abstract; figures as published. Page updated 18 August 2026. Methods.