Serum Lipid Profile in Female Patients with Severe Acne Vulgaris

Background: Acne vulgaris is one of the most common skin conditions affecting young adults. The relationship between lipid profile or lipid ratios and acne is not widely reported. Methods: A case control study was performed in 90 females with severe acne vulgaris. Lipid profiles were measured, lipid ratios were calculated, and results were compared with 90 age matched healthy controls. Results: Total cholesterol, LDL-C, HDL-C, Apo A1, though, were significantly higher in patients as compared to healthy controls but all the levels in patients were within normal range so we calculated lipid ratios for TC/HDL, LDL/HDL, TG/HDL, Apo B/Apo A1, Atherogenic index of plasma and found that all the ratios were significantly higher as compared to controls using a t-test. The area under receiver operating characteristic curve was > 0.7 for all the lipid ratios and sensitivity and specificity were calculated for all the ratios and it was highest for Apo A1/Apo B. Conclusions: We suggest using lipid ratios as a screening test in females with acne vulgaris to diagnose dyslipidemia at an early stage but further studies are required to see the effect of treating hyperlipidemia in females with severe acne vulgaris.