Levels of apolipoprotein B (APoB) may be a better predictor of risk for coronary heart disease than either low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) or triglyceride levels, an international study suggests.

The research shows that triglycerides are likely a risk factor for coronary heart disease in their own right, helping to settle an ongoing debate, the authors said.

The results have prompted commentators to suggest that the findings – drawing on data from more than 600,000 people in 63 studies – might change the tests doctors rely on to establish CVD risk.

The results provided some of the first evidence that the very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) particles that carry triglycerides are as atherogenic as low density lipoproteins, which contain cholesterol, they said.