The usefulness of total cholesterol and high density lipoprotein--cholesterol ratio in interpreting lipid profile results of diabetes mellitus patients.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the usefulness of total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and/or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol/total cholesterol ratios in the interpretation of lipid profile result in clinical practice. METHODS: This is a prospective case-control study involving 109 diabetics, 98 diabetic hypertensives, 102 hypertensives and 120 control subjects. Serum lipid profile and plasma glucose were determined using appropriate methods. RESULTS: The mean ages of the different study groups were similar. Body mass indices of diabetics with or without hypertension were significantly higher than that of the controls. The difference in the mean total cholesterol of each group was not statistically significant when compared with the controls. A significant difference existed in the mean LDL when the different study groups were compared with the controls. There was a significant difference in the mean TG of DM and DM/hypertension patients compared with that of controls. However, the mean TG of hypertensive patients was not statistically different with that of the controls. The mean HDL was lower in each group of patients compared to that of the controls however the difference was not statistically significant. The mean TC/HDL ratios were significantly higher in all groups of patients when compared to that of the controls while HDL/TC ratios were significantly lower in all categories of patients when compared to that of the controls. CONCLUSION: The ratios identified more dyslipidaemia than either of the lipid profile components. Therefore, the use of TC/HDL and or HDL/ TC ratios should be encouraged in screening for dyslipidaemia in diabetic patients with or without hypertension in clinical practice.