Re: Cholesterol improving??????

[Guest guest]

Hi Carolyn;

Does this change in cholesterol coincide with any recent changes of

medications or supplements? I remember Soloway posting

recently (Sept 11, 2006) that her cholesterol declined markedly when

she started taking fish oils (message number 87837 in the archives).

Best regards,

Dave

(father of (21); PSC 07/03; UC 08/03)

> My cholesterol, which has been high all my life (247-285) has

suddenly and inexplicably dropped to 189. Has anyone else encountered

this?? Can anyone provide a clue as to why???

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

No changes recently at all. Last medication change was in December or

January when I started taking xifaxin for the HE. I don't take any fish

oils or vitamins at all, so that's not a factor either. My regular meds

are xifaxin, asacol, imuran, protonix, singulair, elavil, advair

inhaler, and oxygen at night.

In doing a bit of research tonight, I've learned that diabetes is a

frequent complication of cirrhosis, and we knew I was moving into the

early stages of cirrhosis. Does that help shed any light on the

cholesterol mystery?

Many thanks!

Regards,

Carolyn B. in SC

=======================

wrote:

>

> Does this change in cholesterol coincide with any recent changes of

> medications or supplements? I remember Soloway posting

> recently (Sept 11, 2006) that her cholesterol declined markedly when

> she started taking fish oils (message number 87837 in the archives).

>

>

> > My cholesterol, which has been high all my life (247-285) has

> suddenly and inexplicably dropped to 189. Has anyone else encountered

> this?? Can anyone provide a clue as to why???

[Guest guest]

Hi Carolyn;

I'm sorry, I don't have a good explanation for your sudden drop in

cholesterol. According to studies done at Mayo Clinic, total

cholesterol tends to rise with later histological stages of PSC, and

in correlation with increased bilirubin. Did your bilirubin also

decline?

However, in advanced PSC (pre-transplant patients) there may be a

switch to an inverse correlation between total serum cholesterol and

bilirubin level, implying that cholesterol levels may tend to go

down in advanced stages of the disease. Perhaps this reflects

decreased liver function and impaired cholesterol synthesis in

cirrhosis?

J Clin Gastroenterol. 1995 Apr;20(3):215-9.

Serum lipid and fat-soluble vitamin levels in primary sclerosing

cholangitis.

nsen RA, Lindor KD, Sartin JS, LaRusso NF, Wiesner RH.

Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA.

We reviewed the initial lipid and fat-soluble vitamin levels in 56

patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) enrolled in a

randomized, placebo-controlled trial evaluating ursodeoxycholic

acid. We also evaluated lipid and vitamin levels in a group of 87

patients with advanced PSC being evaluated for liver

transplantation. Of the patients entering the therapeutic trial, 41%

had total serum cholesterol levels greater than the 95th percentile,

whereas only 20% had high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels

above normal, and only one (2%) had an elevated triglyceride level.

Total cholesterol levels were correlated with serum bilirubin levels

and were lower in early versus later histologic stages (206 +/- 61

vs. 248 +/- 79, p = 0.04). Of the 87 pretransplant patients, 29% had

elevated serum cholesterol levels and 17% had elevated serum

triglyceride levels. Total serum cholesterol levels correlated

inversely with total serum bilirubin levels in this group. In

patients in the therapeutic trial, vitamin A deficiency was seen in

40%, vitamin D deficiency in 14%, and vitamin E deficiency in 2% of

those tested. More prominent deficiencies of fat-soluble vitamins

occurred in the pretransplant group of patients, with 82% deficient

in vitamin A, 57% deficient in vitamin D, and 43% deficient in

vitamin E. We conclude that hypercholesterolemia and fat-soluble

vitamin deficiencies are frequent in patients with PSC and are more

common with more severe disease. Patients with PSC, especially with

advanced liver disease, should be screened for fat-soluble vitamin

deficiencies and supplemented accordingly. PMID: 7797830.

Perhaps Dr. Aubrey could comment on this possibility, or other

explanations? It is not clear to me how new-onset diabetes might

influence cholesterol levels.

Best regards,

Dave

(father of (21); PSC 07/03; UC 08/03)

>

> Hi ,

>

> No changes recently at all. Last medication change was in

December or January when I started taking xifaxin for the HE. I

don't take any fish oils or vitamins at all, so that's not a factor

either. My regular meds are xifaxin, asacol, imuran, protonix,

singulair, elavil, advair inhaler, and oxygen at night.

>

> In doing a bit of research tonight, I've learned that diabetes is

a frequent complication of cirrhosis, and we knew I was moving into

the early stages of cirrhosis. Does that help shed any light on

the cholesterol mystery?

>

> Many thanks!

>

> Regards,

> Carolyn B. in SC