Dyslipidemia in patients with angiographically confirmed coronary artery disease--an opportunity for improvement.

Background: There are few data about lipid profiles in unselected patients with angiographically confirmed coronary artery disease (CAD).

Hypothesis: The study was undertaken to investigate the demographics, clinical characteristics, angiographic findings, and baseline lipid status of 1,000 consecutive unselected patients with angiographically confirmed CAD.

Methods: Between April 2001 and July 2002, we obtained informed consent and prospectively collected clinical characteristics, fasting lipid profiles, and angiographic results from 1,000 sequential patients with CAD confirmed by angiography.

Results: In these patients with confirmed CAD, 78% had history of hyperlipidemia. Although 62% were receiving lipid-lowering therapy, only 46% had a low-density lipoprotein target of < 100 mg/dl, and only 20% had achieved all four National Cholesterol Education Program-recommended lipid targets.

Conclusions: Better strategies to ensure optimal lipid levels are required. One such method using computerized workflow is being evaluated in this population.