Importance of reducing dietary fat intake:
Reducing dietary fat, LDL reduction, and arterial diameter: Fourteen patients with slightly elevated levels of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and confirmed coronary atherosclerosis were treated with pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic interventions for 2 years. The subjects were evaluated by coronary angiogram before and after the 2 year University of California Davis Coronary Artery Disease Regression Program. During the study intervention, dietary fat intake was decreased by 58% and intensive risk factor reduction was implemented. LDL levels dropped from 120 mg/dL to 104 mg/dL (p = 0.05). After 24 months, there was a net increase in arterial diameter (regression) of 0.05 mm to 2.81 mm (p = 0.01). While there was no significant change in the average diameter of discrete stenosis (abnormal narrowing in a blood vessel), 1 of 8 mild lesions < or = 20% regressed, while 4 progressed. The intervention resulted in regression of more severe lesions (> 50% initial stenosis), but does not appear to prevent progression of mild lesions (< 20%). These findings suggest that in patients with only mild elevation of lipids, the modification of risk factors improves the biology of the most severe lesions. (8)
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