Effect of xuezhikang, a cholestin extract, on reflecting postprandial triglyceridemia after a high-fat meal in patients with coronary heart disease

The effect of xuezhikang on postprandial triglyceride (TG) level was investigated in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) after a high-fat meal (800 cal; 50 g fat). Fifty CHD patients were randomly divided into two groups to accept xuezhikang (xuezhikang group) 1200 mg/day (600 mg twice daily) or not (control group) on the base of routine therapy which included aspirin, metoprolol and fosinopril and nitrates during the whole 6 weeks following-up. Xuezhikang significantly reduced fasting serum total cholesterol (TC) (-20%), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C, -34%), TG (-32%) and apoB (-27%) levels, and raised fasting high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C, 18%) and apoA-I (13%) levels (P < 0.001). The postprandial serum TG levels at 2, 4 and 6 h decreased 32, 38 and 43%, respectively, in xuezhikang group (P < 0.001). The TG area under the curve over the fasting TG level (TG-AUC) significantly decreased in CHD patients accepted xuezhikang with normal (less than 1.7 mmol/l) and elevated (1.74 to 2.92 mmol/l) fasting TG levels by 45 and 50%, respectively (P < 0.001). Routine therapy had no significant effect on the fasting and postprandial lipid and apolipoprotein levels. The change of TG-AUC was significantly related to the changes of fasting TG, TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C levels after the treatment, which were related to the changes of fasting apoA-I and apoB levels significantly (P < 0.001). Xuezhikang was shown to be beneficial in the treatment of reflecting postprandial triglyceridemia in CHD patients with normal and mildly elevated fasting TG levels. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.