There is a growing body of evidence indicating that high triglyceride levels are an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. In this study we compared the association of fasting levels of non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides with white blood cell (WBC) count, an inflammatory marker associated with an adverse CVD prognosis. We studied 458 asymptomatic men (46.0 +/- 7.0 years old) who presented for CVD risk stratification. WBC count (x10(9) cells/L) increased significantly across increasing tertiles of triglyceride level (tertile 1, 6.04 +/- 1.49; tertile 2 6.21 +/- 1.44; tertile 3 6.78 +/- 1.73, p <0.0001), whereas a trend of lower WBC counts was observed across increasing tertiles of HDL cholesterol (tertile 1, 6.52 +/- 1.62; tertile 2, 6.24 +/- 1.50; tertile 3, 6.21 +/- 1.61, p = 0.08). In models adjusted for age, gender, and CVD risk factor, the odds ratio for a high WBC count (quartile > or =4 vs lower 3 quartiles) was significantly higher with increasing levels of triglyceride (2.4, 95% confidence interval 1.3 to 4.8, p = 0.02). When all lipid variables were introduced in the models in addition to traditional CVD risk factors, the association between plasma triglyceride level and WBC count persisted (p = 0.04), which was not found for other lipid parameters. In conclusion, in our study, only plasma triglyceride level was independently associated with a higher WBC count.