How is skin cholesterol different from the serum cholesterol?
Currently there are studies underway to further understand the epidemiology of skin cholesterol. What we do know is that serum cholesterol is the free flowing cholesterol in the blood, which may not adhere to vessel walls. Current blood cholesterol tests require a period of fasting in order to determine the cholesterol that is not the result of an immediately digested meal. The skin tissue cholesterol is a result of epithelial steroidogenesis and cholesterol diffusion from blood vessels. Although the test is taken at a moment in time, it may provide a longer-term look at the cholesterol burden in the tissues since skin cholesterol is accumulated over time with rejuvenation every 3 4 weeks. High serum cholesterol levels do not correlate to high skin cholesterol scores or vice versa.
