New York, NY (July 9, 2003) -- A major educational conference in New York on July 10-13 -- the International Symposium on Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, and Cardiovascular Disease -- will show that it may not be enough simply to reduce LDL cholesterol (or "bad cholesterol") in the effort to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). Each year, CHD kills more men and women in the United States than the next seven causes of death combined. But about half of the heart attacks each year strike people with low to normal cholesterol. Thus, factors other than high cholesterol must also contribute to CHD risk. The conference will elucidate a particular group of risk factors that have come to be known as the "metabolic syndrome." Dr. Antonio J. Gotto, Jr., M.D., the Dean of Weill Cornell Medical College and one of the world's foremost experts on cardiovascular disease, will open the conference and participate in satellite symposia.

The metabolic syndrome represents a constellation of risk factors for coronary heart disease, comprising abdominal obesity, elevated triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol (the "good cholesterol"), elevated blood pressure, and elevated glucose levels, among other factors. It is vitally important, as it increases a person's risk for developing CHD (e.g., a heart attack) and can also lead to diabetes. Persons with Type 2 diabetes have a twofold to fourfold greater risk for CHD. The increasing prevalence of obesity in Western societies, including the United States, has led to a growth in the number of people with the metabolic syndrome.

The blood contains several lipoproteins and lipids (fat-like substances) that can contribute to the blockage of arteries leading to the heart. One of these lipoproteins, LDL cholesterol (or "bad cholesterol"), has received a great deal of attention; researchers and physicians have largely concentrated on lowering LDL cholesterol to reduce the risk for CHD. Recently, however, other risk factors have been identified. For example, high levels of triglyceride, another fat-like substance, is often found in patients with diabetes or the metabolic syndrome.

Dr. Gotto, Co-Chair of the Symposium, describes this event as "very timely, as this field has grown and changed significantly within the past few years, with the promise of new pharmacological treatment and combined therapies." Dr. Gotto has been involved in major studies leading to advances in the prevention and treatment of CHD. In one of these studies, researchers found that certain apolipoproteins, the major structural components of lipoproteins, may be more important than LDL cholesterol as CHD risk factors. Together with research into triglycerides and the metabolic syndrome, findings such as this may eventually lead to the development of new treatments that can reduce the number of heart attacks each year.----

Dr. Gotto opens the program on Thursday, July 10, at 8:30 am, with a discussion of the evolution of triglycerides as a coronary risk factor, including whether high triglycerides alone can increase a person's risk for CHD.--Although there is controversy among experts about whether triglycerides are an independent risk factor, elevated triglycerides are often found in association with conditions, such as the metabolic syndrome, that increase cardiovascular risk. High triglycerides together with other factors may help physicians differentiate between higher- and lower-risk patients, and may be useful in determining treatment.

The Symposium will take place at the New York Marriott Marquis, 1535 Broadway, Broadway Ballroom North (6th floor). Sponsored by the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, in New York; the Giovanni Lorenzini Medical Foundation, in Houston; and the Fondazione Giovanni Lorenzini, in Milan, the Symposium will give researchers and physicians the opportunity to hear international experts discuss the most recent developments in understanding the "metabolic syndrome."

The Symposium, which is endorsed by major international cardiology associations, will include sessions covering epidemiology; mechanisms by which triglycerides and the metabolic syndrome can contribute to heart disease; prevention and treatment; and a stimulating debate on the metabolic syndrome. There will also be several satellite symposia, including one entitled "Evolving Role of Combination Therapy in the Management of Dyslipidemia." In that session, Dr. Gotto will discuss more effective ways to prevent and treat CHD, emphasizing the importance of multiple risk factors, such as the metabolic syndrome, and addressing why many at-risk patients are not being adequately treated.

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Jonathan Weil, PhD
Director of Research Communications
Office of Public Affairs
Weill Cornell Medical College
NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center
525 East 68th Street, Box 144
New York, NY 10021