Lipoprotein Levels and Post-heparin Lipase Activities in Kidney Transplant Recipients: Ciclosporin- Versus Non-ciclosporin-treated Patients

Lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured in 118 clinically stable patients who had received a kidney transplant more than 1 year earlier. Seventy-one were treated with ciclosporin (CS), 47 were not. The CS group had significantly higher mean cholesterol (6.54 versus 6.00 mmol/l) and triglyceride (1.83 versus 1.34 mmol/l) concentrations than the non-CS group. LDL/HDL cholesterol ratios were similar in the two groups. The CS patients had higher creatinine and prednisolone doses and used beta-blockers and loop diuretics more frequently. Multiple regression analysis did not show an independent correlation between lipid levels and treatment with CS. On the other hand, there was an independent correlation between cholesterol levels and treatment with loop diuretics, suggesting that such treatment contributes to the higher cholesterol levels in kidney transplant recipients. The diabetics had a more favorable lipoprotein profile than the nondiabetics, especially in triglycerides and HDL cholesterol levels. The marked difference in triglyceride levels between the treatment groups prompted us to evaluate the lipoprotein lipase and hepatic lipase activities in 20 hyperlipidemic, nondiabetic patients. Both enzyme activities were moderately reduced with no difference between the treatment groups, suggesting that factors other than CS interfere with the lipase activities in kidney transplant recipients.