The risks of cardiovascular events are due to the major factors contributing to an individual’s risk of being a victim of heart disease. Some of the major factors that bring about the development of these diseases are genetic factors. An individual inherits genes from the parents, which puts them at high risk of developing heart diseases(Ryan et al., 2018). Another factor is an individual’s lifestyle and behavior, where an individual exposes themselves to activities and behaviors that expose them to health hazards leading to the development of heart disease. This paper highlights the importance of using the LDL-C Manager app to estimate and manage the risks of ASCVD.
The application enables the determination of the range of ASCVD hazards to an individual by using information such as an individual’s HDL cholesterol, the patient’s age, sex, blood pressure treatment, smoking habits, total cholesterol, and diabetes status. In this scenario, the patient’s data on his risk factors include:
- Age – 52 years.
- Sex – Male.
- Race – African American.
- B.P – 136/85.
- Total Cholesterol – 190.
- HDL Cholesterol – 40.
- LDL Cholesterol – 121.
Providing the patient’s information and risk factors to the LDL – C app manager will enable the clinicians to determine the probability of the patient’s risk of experiencing a cardiovascular event. The results obtained from the application are:
- Calculated 10-year ASCVD Risk = 20.4%
- Calculated 10-year ASCVD Risk with minimal factors = 4.3%
- Calculated lifetime ASCVD Risk = 69%
- Calculated lifetime ASCVD Risk with minimal factors = 5%
Changing the patient’s data parameter in the LDL – C app manager by including smoking as his behavioral habit will provide the clinician with a different result:
- Calculated 10-year ASCVD Risk = 32.6%
- Calculated 10-year ASCVD Risk with minimal factors = 4.3%
- Calculated lifetime ASCVD Risk = 69%
- Calculated lifetime ASCVD Risk with minimal factors = 5%
There is a significant change in the patient’s calculated 10 – year ASCVD Risk, which increases to 32.6%.
One of the most important tools within the LDL –C application manager is the Statin Intolerance tool which works simultaneously with the ASCVD Risk estimator to provide the appropriate information. The Statin Intolerance tool is used to determine the appropriate non – Statin therapy for a clinical patient. It also enables the clinician to know when to stop subjecting the patient to a given non-Statin therapy (Ryan et al., 2018). This application is important within the clinical setting since it enables medical practitioners to save time when conducting various tests on their patients with factors that enhance the high risk of cardiovascular events.
Reference
Ryan, A., Heath, S., & Cook, P. (2018). Managing dyslipidemia for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease. BMJ, k946.