UCLA

Background

Risk of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) among hepatitis C virus (HCV)-positive versus HCV-negative persons with similar lipid levels is unknown. We determined incident AMI rates among HCV-positive and HCV-negative men among various lipid strata.

Methods

We created a propensity score matched (PSM) cohort and a low cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk cohort. Primary outcome was incident AMI rates by HCV status in each lipid strata using National Cholesterol Program guidelines for lipid strata.

Results

We identified 85863 HCV-positive and HCV-negative men in the PSM population. The incidence rates/1000 patient-years (95% confidence interval [CI]) for AMI among total cholesterol (TC) 200-239 stratum were 5.3 (4.89, 5.71) for HCV-positive versus 4.71 (4.42, 5) for HCV-negative men (P = .02) and for TC >240 mg/dL were 7.38 (6.49, 8.26) versus 6.17 (5.64, 6.71) (P = .02). For low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) of 130-159 mg/dL, AMI rates were 5.44 (4.97, 5.91) for HCV-positive and 4.81 (4.48, 5.14) for HCV-negative men (P = .03). The rise in risk with increasing lipid levels was greater in younger HCV-positive than in HCV-negative men (e.g., TC > 240 mg/dL: age >50 HR 1.38 [HCV-positive] and 1.12 [HCV-negative]; age ≤50 HR 1.6 [HCV-positive] and 1.29 [HCV-negative]), and more profoundly altered in HCV-positive men by lipid lowering therapy (change in HR with lipid-lowering therapy for TC >240 mg/dL from 1.82 to 1.19 [HCV-positive] from 1.48 to 1.03 [HCV-negative]).

Conclusions

HCV-positive men have a higher risk of AMI than HCV-negative men at higher TC/LDL levels; this risk is more pronounced at a younger age. Lipid lowering therapy significantly reduces this risk, with more profound reduction among HCV-positive versus HCV-negative men at similar lipid levels.