Comparison of three equations for estimating low‐density lipoprotein‐cholesterol in the rural northeastern region of Thailand

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death worldwide, and the detection of LDL‐C contributes to reducing risks. However, the LDL‐C is rarely evaluated according to the gold standard method because it is costly and time‐consuming. This study aimed to determine the agreement of LDL‐C among three equations, namely Friedewald's equation, Puavilai's equation, and Dansethakul's equation. METHODS: A cross‐sectional descriptive study. RESULTS: Using the data of lipid measurement from a specific group of people in the remote rural area, we found that the Thai equations have more superior agreement with direct measurement than the Friedewald equation (ICC = 0.870, 95% CI = 0.857‐0.882) when the agreement of continuous data was used for total analysis. Although the categorical analysis that gave better agreement was from Friedewald equation (K index = 0.730, 95% CI = 0.720‐0.751), the findings from this study confirmed the population‐specific use of Pauvilai's equation and Dansethakul's equation for determining the LDL‐C. CONCLUSION: Pauvilai's equation showed better agreement with direct measurement for LDL‐C. Thus, it could be considered as an alternative for the direct method, particularly in laboratories in rural areas in Thailand.