Elevated cholesterol sparks stroke risk in healthy women

Apparently health women with no till-date history of heart disease or stroke are twice more likely to suffer from one, if they record high cholesterol levels, a Boston study cautions.

Featuring in the current issue of U.S. journal Neurology, the study lays stress on the chemical makeup of cholesterol.

“Elevated cholesterol levels are a biologic risk factor for stroke and that avoiding unfavorable cholesterol levels may help prevent stroke,” Dr. Tobias Kurth, the study's lead author and an assistant professor of medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston emphasized.

A blend of sterol and a lipid found in the cell membranes of all body tissues, Cholesterol is transported in the blood plasma of all beings. Cholesterol is required to build and maintain cell membranes in the human body.

Minimally soluble in water, Cholesterol cannot dissolve in water and thus, travels in the water-based bloodstream.

Bifurcated into categories, LDL (low-density lipoprotein) or the “bad Cholesterol” promotes atheroma formation in the walls of arteries which is the principal cause of coronary heart disease and strokes. In contrast, HDL (High density lipoprotein)or the “good Cholesterol” promotes removal of atheroma from arteries.

A stroke is an acute neurological injury which induces interruption of blood supply to a part of the brain.

The third leading cause of death and adult disability in the United States, stokes are medically classified into Ischemic stroke and Hemorrhagic stroke.

It can cause permanent neurologic damage or even death if not promptly diagnosed and treated.

The study focused on ischemic stroke which is the cause of approximately 80 percent of all strokes. A blood vessel becomes occluded and the blood supply to part of the brain is totally or partially blocked.

To evaluate the association between total cholesterol with the risk of ischemic stroke in a large cohort of apparently healthy women, the researchers measured cholesterol levels of participants of the Women's Health Study, which included 27, 937 U.S. women aged around 45 years at baseline.

None of the participants had a history of heart disease, cancer, or other major illness at baseline.

However, during 11 years of follow-up, 282 ischemic strokes occurred. Stroke occurrence was self-reported and confirmed by medical record review.

Researchers found high association between lipid levels and increased risk of ischemic stroke.

Also, participants recording high level of HDL ("good") cholesterol cut their stroke risk by nearly half, whereas, high levels of LDL ("bad") cholesterol or non-HDL cholesterol doubled the chances of a stroke, researchers reveal.

Although previous studies also linked stroke and cholesterol close together, but they inducted reports on men and in populations at high risk for cardiovascular events. All study’s scope excluded women base.

“The findings here for women are clearer and show that even in apparently healthy women, there's a risk," Kurth added.