Postprandial response to a fat tolerance test in young adults with a paternal history of premature coronary heart disease - the EARS II study

Background The European Atherosclerosis Research Study (EARS) I had shown that fasting plasma concentrations of apolipoprotein B (apo B) and triglycerides were the most discriminant variables between offspring with a paternal history of coronary heart disease (CHD) and controls. The EARS II study was undertaken to investigate whether a paternal history of CHD was associated with differences in postprandial lipemia. Design Male subjects with a paternal history of CHD (cases, n = 407) and age‐matched male controls (n = 415) were recruited from 14 European universities. All subjects had an oral fat tolerance test. Results In the sample as a whole, the postprandial triglyceride responses did not significantly differ between the two groups. However, in the upper tertile of fasting triglycerides, cases displayed a higher area under the curve (5.71 vs. 4.49 mmol.h L−1, P