This fall, my annual cholesterol screening showed an alarming increase in all the cholesterol markers: Total Cholesterol, HDL (‘good’) cholesterol and LDL (‘bad’) cholesterol.
Both my Primary Care Doctor and I whipped out our phones and opened the ASCVD risk calculator app. I was relieved to find that although my 10-year risk of heart disease had increased versus last year, it still showed a low enough risk that statin medication was not required.
BUT THEN she told me about someone who eats well and exercises and also had a low 10-year risk of heart disease according to the calculator –
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. According to the American Heart Association, “Cardiovascular disease, listed as the underlying cause of death, accounts for nearly 836,546 deaths in the US. That’s about 1 of every 3 deaths in the US.”
1 in 3.
What’s your risk? If you know your cholesterol levels and blood pressure you can calculate YOUR risk of heart disease (and take steps to lower it). It’s easy with this online calculator:
Online AHA 10-Year Heart Disease Risk Calculator: Web version *
February is American Heart Month: do you know your personal 10-year risk of heart disease? And the key factors that elevate heart disease risk?
What’s Your Personal 10-Year Risk of Heart Disease?
You can easily calculate your own 10-year risk of heart disease. In fact, the risk calculator is even available in an app (my cardiologist used his phone to calculate my risk during our last appointment). If you do not already have heart disease, are between 40-80 years old, and have an LDL cholesterol level lower than 190 mg/dL, you can calculate your 10-Year risk of heart disease with an online calculator.
It’s startling how much debate and disagreement exists about the guidelines for statin use.
Back in November 2013, new guidelines were published by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology. The 2013 guidelines represented a significant shift in cholesterol management: essentially moving away from targeting/treating to a specific cholesterol level and instead encouraging treatment of all individuals with a 10-year risk of heart disease of 7.5% or higher (for specifics, see my post, The NEW guidelines for cholesterol-lowering statin meds).
There then ensued heated arguments over the published Risk Calculator that yields that all-important 10-year level of heart disease risk.
The quick answer to ‘Am I a candidate for one of the two new PCSK9 cholesterol-lowering drugs?’ is Probably Not (unless you have FH or have heart disease / have had a heart attack.)
The reason? Two, actually. First, this totally new class of (injectable) cholesterol-lowering drugs is approved ONLY for those with high cardiac risk. And secondly, clinical study results with key safety data won’t be available for YEARS.
The two new drugs, Praluent and Repatha, were approved this past summer by the FDA only for those with a serious, genetically inherited disease that causes very high LDL (bad) cholesterol called Familial Hypercholsterolemia (FH) and/or for those who have heart disease / have suffered a heart attack.
