Associations of non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol and traditional blood lipid profiles with hyperuricemia among middle-aged and elderly Chinese people: a community-based cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Increased serum uric acid (SUA) is associated with dyslipidemia. However, there are conflicting data about the role of single lipid species including non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) in promoting SUA accumulation. Here, we aimed to compare non-HDL-C with other traditional blood lipid profiles in relation to hyperuricemia in a middle-aged and elderly Chinese population. METHODS: Data was collected from 9580 participants undergoing routine physical examinations in Xiangcheng district of Suzhou. SUA, total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were examined for all participants. Non-HDL-C was calculated by subtracting HDL-C from TC. The associations of blood lipid profiles with hyperuricemia were examined in men and women, respectively. The areas under Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves (AUCs) were compared to assess the discriminatory value of blood lipid parameters for predicting hyperuricemia. RESULTS: All blood lipid parameters significantly correlated with SUA (all P values <0.001). The correlation coefficient between SUA and TG was the highest in both genders. The correlation coefficient of non-HDL-C was higher than HDL-C in males and was higher than TC and LDL-C but followed HDL-C in females. In male group, AUC of TG (0.659) was greater than that of non-HDL-C (0.595) (P values <0.001). The AUC values of HDL-C, TC and LDL-C were lower; respectively 0.581, 0.559 and 0.552. In female group, AUC was highest for TG (0.678) followed by HDL-C (0.616), non-HDL-C (0.610), LDL-C (0.559) and TC (0.557) (all P values < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In both genders, serum TG has the strongest association with hyperuricemia among blood lipid parameters. Non-HDL-C is also significantly associated with hyperuricemia.