What is the reference range for Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number?

The standard reference range for Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number is Reported as a count; commonly cited risk tiers place roughly 1600 nmol/L at high risk, method-dependent.. Reference ranges vary by laboratory and assay platform — interpret in context of the issuing laboratory's stated range.

Which tests measure Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number?

Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number is measured in 1 test on BiomarkersLabs.com, including Advanced Lipid Panel, Cardio IQ Test.

Biomarker Reference · LDL-P

What does the Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number test measure?

Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number (LDL-P) is a clinical biomarker used in cardiovascular assessment. Every atherogenic lipoprotein in the low-density range carries a single apolipoprotein B molecule, so a direct count of these particles reports how many cholesterol-carrying vehicles are circulating rather than how much cholesterol they hold. It is measured in 1 laboratory test on BiomarkersLabs.com.

Reference Range: Reported as a count; commonly cited risk tiers place roughly <1000 nmol/L at lower risk and >1600 nmol/L at high risk, method-dependent.
Units: nmol/L
Measured In: 1 test
Category: Cardiovascular

Functional medicine optimalLipidology sources often target below roughly the 20th percentile (near 1000 nmol/L) for patients at elevated cardiovascular risk.

What is Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number?

Every atherogenic lipoprotein in the low-density range carries a single apolipoprotein B molecule, so a direct count of these particles reports how many cholesterol-carrying vehicles are circulating rather than how much cholesterol they hold. Particle number and cholesterol content track together in most patients, but hepatic lipid handling, insulin resistance, and triglyceride enrichment can uncouple them, producing many small cholesterol-poor particles that a standard cholesterol measurement understates.

Why is Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number measured?

LDL-P quantifies the atherogenic particle burden that drives arterial intimal retention, and it is most informative when it is read against LDL-C and the rest of the panel rather than alone. The decisive scenario is discordance: when particle number sits higher than the cholesterol concentration predicts, residual risk is underestimated by LDL-C, and the particle count reclassifies the patient upward. It is interpreted together with apolipoprotein B, which it closely parallels.

Reference ranges

Standard reference: Reported as a count; commonly cited risk tiers place roughly <1000 nmol/L at lower risk and >1600 nmol/L at high risk, method-dependent.
Functional medicine optimal: Lipidology sources often target below roughly the 20th percentile (near 1000 nmol/L) for patients at elevated cardiovascular risk.
Units: nmol/L

Reference ranges vary by laboratory and assay platform. Interpret in context of the issuing laboratory's stated range.

Tests that measure Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number

1 test on BiomarkersLabs.com include this biomarker.

BML-CAR-033Comprehensive

Advanced Lipid Panel, Cardio IQ Test

Low-Density Lipoprotein Particle Number reference range in this test: Reported as a count; commonly cited risk tiers place roughly <1000 nmol/L at lower risk and >1600 nmol/L at high risk, method-dependent.

Related clinical conditions

Related Biomarkers

Frequently measured alongside

Apolipoprotein BApoB2 tests Low-Density Lipoprotein CholesterolLDL-C1 test High-Density Lipoprotein CholesterolHDL-C1 test TriglyceridesTG4 tests Lipoprotein(a)Lp(a)2 tests Non-HDL Cholesterol (derived)Non-HDL-C2 tests

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