The effect of atorvastatin on serum lipide, lipoproteins and NMR-spectroscopy defined lipoprotein subclasses in type 2 diabetic patients with ischaemic heart disease

The effect of statin therapy on subclasses of LDL, VLDL and HDL lipoproteins is unclear. We compared changes in serum lipids, apolipoproteins and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy measured lipoprotein subclass concentration and average particle size over a minimum 6 months treatment period of atorvastatin 10 mg vs. placebo in 122 men and women. All subjects had type 2 diabetes and a modest dyslipidaemia (mean LDL-cholesterol 3.2 mmol/l and median triglycerides 1.8 mmol/l) and had a previous myocardial infarction. Compared with placebo, atorvastatin therapy was associated with a greater decrease in medium VLDL (median within person change -13.4 vs. -5.9 nmol/l, P