The Study
Triglyceride-glucose index and triglyceride to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio as potential cardiovascular disease risk factors: an analysis of UK biobank data
This study looked at a bunch of people over many years and found that those with higher TyG and TG/HDL numbers tended to get heart problems later. But it didn’t make anyone change their habits — it just watched what happened. So we can say these numbers are linked to heart disease, but we can’t say they cause it.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Scientists checked two easy-to-calculate numbers from blood tests to see if they could guess who might get heart disease later.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 572 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes — even if someone doesn’t have diabetes or high blood pressure yet, these simple blood markers can signal higher heart disease risk years before symptoms appear.
- 2People with higher numbers had up to 29% more heart disease over 8 years.
- 3These numbers were linked to diabetes, high blood pressure, and bad cholesterol, which explained most of the risk.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Cardiovascular Diabetology
Year
2023
Authors
Bizhong Che, C. Zhong, Ruijie Zhang, Liyuan Pu, Tian Zhao, Yonghong Zhang, Liyuan Han
Related Content
Claims (6)
Elevated triglyceride-glucose index and triglyceride-to-HDL cholesterol ratio are linked to cardiovascular disease, and dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension account for 56% and 47% of that link, respectively, showing they are key pathways by which insulin resistance contributes to cardiovascular disease.
Higher levels of the triglyceride-glucose index and the triglyceride-to-HDL cholesterol ratio are linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, with each standard deviation increase in these measures corresponding to an 8% and 12% higher risk, respectively.
Middle-aged adults with higher levels of the triglyceride-glucose index and the triglyceride-to-HDL cholesterol ratio have a 19% and 29% higher rate of cardiovascular disease over 8.1 years, even when accounting for other known risk factors such as age, smoking, and diabetes.
People with a higher ratio of triglycerides to HDL cholesterol have a greater likelihood of developing cardiovascular disease.
People with a higher ratio of triglycerides to HDL cholesterol have a 37% greater risk of coronary heart disease compared to those with a lower ratio, and this ratio is a stronger indicator of heart disease risk than the triglyceride-glucose index.
In people studied, measurements of triglyceride-glucose index and triglyceride-to-HDL cholesterol ratio did not show a statistically significant link to stroke risk when other health factors were accounted for.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.