Epidemiological Study of Lipoprotein (a) in Okinawa

A study of serum levels of lipoprotein (a) (Lp (a)) was performed among 217 normal adults including 135 men and 82 women in the northern part of Okinawa. Ages of the subjects ranged from 24 to 76 with an average of 49 years. Concentrations of Lp (a) in blood were measured by sand-wich ELISA. The average Lp (a) concentration was 20.7 mg/ dl and the peak of the distribution of serum Lp (a) concentra-tion ranged from 10 to 15 mg/dl. A greater number of people in the investigated area tended to show a higher level of serum concentration of Lp (a) than those in any other prefectures in Japan, although there was no significant relationship between serum level of lipoprotein (a), total cholesterol, triglyceride, age or gender in healthy subjects. Key words: lipoprotein (a), total cholesterol, triglycerid