Quiz · 8 questions
Why cholesterol matters
Chest pressure, pain spreading to the arm or jaw, or sudden breathlessness is an emergency, not a quiz.
Why it matters
LDL cholesterol is a cause of heart disease, not just a marker of it, and the longer it stays high the more damage it does [1]. Lowering it pays off: each 1 mmol/L of LDL lowered with statins cut deaths from any cause by about 10% [2]. Some people also inherit high lipoprotein(a), a particle that raises heart attack risk on its own [3].
Sources
- [1]Ference BA, Ginsberg HN, Graham I, et al., Eur Heart J 2017 Evidence: Not graded (guideline)
- [2]Baigent C, Blackwell L, Emberson J, et al. (Cholesterol Treatment Trialists Collaboration), Lancet 2010 Evidence: High
- [3]Kamstrup PR, Tybjaerg-Hansen A, Steffensen R, et al., JAMA 2009 Evidence: Low
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