High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL cholesterol) is commonly measured to assess the risk of heart disease. If you’ve had a blood sample drawn for assessment of lipid panel you probably already know if your cholesterol level is acceptable or not. You might also recall something about good and bad cholesterol and the ratio between these two. Of course, … Read more
Current medical knowledge is to a large extent based on results from scientific studies. Traditionally, these results are published in peer-reviewed medical journals. Before being accepted, a scientific paper has to go through critical assessment by expert reviewers who will assess the paper’s suitability for publication. The peer review process is intended to guarantee standards of quality and … Read more
For many years, lowering blood levels of low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) has been a key target for individuals with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and healthy people at increased risk for developing such disease. Statin drugs play a key role for risk reduction and are prescribed to millions of people worldwide. Apart from lowering blood cholesterol, … Read more
One of the biggest questions facing clinical cardiology today is the decision on when to treat healthy people with statin drugs. Data from randomized clinical trials show that such treatment may be beneficial for individuals with high risk of developing cardiovascular disease. However, statins are not without side effects, therefore we have to be sure … Read more
Although the death rate from coronary heart disease (CHD) has declined rapidly during the last few decades, CHD remains the most common cause of death in most countries around the world. The reduction in death rate is partly due to fewer people being diagnosed with CHD and partly due to a better prognosis of those … Read more