The war over the new blood pressure guideline is not a fake war or a childish dispute. It is a real war over genuine differences in how we should think about health and disease and prevention. The publication last November of the new US blood pressure guideline sparked a vigorous and important debate. A central part…
Blacks Face Higher Mortality from Heart Disease, Stroke
October 23, 2017 by 1 Comment
–CV disease accounts for large portion of health disparities. Cardiovascular disease led to the loss of more than 2 millions years of life in the African-American population between 1999 and 2010. A new scientific statement from the American Heart Association, Cardiovascular Health in African Americans, makes clear that, compared to whites, African Americans suffer disproportionately…
Why Do Doctors Still Rely On LDL Instead Of Non-HDL Cholesterol?
October 15, 2017 by 4 Comments
–There’s broad agreement that non-HDL is a better measure than LDL. For decades lipid experts have been saying that non-HDL is preferable to LDL cholesterol in the assessment of cardiovascular risk. The subject is not controversial. Although they may disagree about its precise significance, every expert I contacted agreed that non-HDL is superior to LDL….
Upcoming US Guideline Will Likely Set 130/80 As New Blood Pressure Target
October 6, 2017 by 1 Comment
–The highly anticipated AHA/ACC BP guideline will be published in November. The new magic number will be 130 over 80 mm Hg. That’s the new blood pressure goal that many hypertension experts say will be the centerpiece of the new US blood pressure guidelines. The new guideline will be introduced next month in Anaheim during the…
Study Fuels Debate Over When to Start Cholesterol Screening
May 15, 2017 by 3 Comments
–For younger adults, study finds low yield of 10-year risk-based screening A new study provides ammunition to supporters of a conservative approach to initiating cholesterol tests in younger adults. But proponents of a more aggressive approach argue that the interpretation does not take into account the enormous burden of cardiovascular disease as people grow older….
A Novel Way To Think About Primary Prevention, Death, And Statins
March 17, 2016 by 3 Comments
A new paper offers a novel way to think about disease prevention. The way we think– and talk– about disease prevention now is complicated and confusing. A key ingredient in the decision to take statins for the prevention of cardiovascular disease, for instance, is the estimation of 10-year cardiovascular risk. This single number, which represents…
Cardiovascular Risk Prediction: Two More Studies, Little Progress
August 21, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Two studies published in JAMA provide new data — and, perhaps, some additional clarity — about using additional markers to help improve risk prediction for coronary heart disease (CHD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD). In one study, Joseph Yeboah and colleagues used data from 1330 intermediate-risk participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) to analyze the prognostic value of…
Understanding Risk: Tricky Business
June 3, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Editor’s Note: The attached article (click on the image to download the PDF) about understanding risk was originally published in the Harvard Health Letter in 1994. I recently stumbled across it in my archives and thought some readers here might enjoy it. Although it is directed at a consumer and not a professional audience, I…
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