Cholesterol: A Common Risk That Can be Controlled
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Over 500,000 Americans die from heart disease every year. That's about one death every minute.
Among the most common risk factors for heart disease are cholesterol problems, often referred to as “lipid disorders.” In order to take control of your cholesterol it is important to know what cholesterol is and what it does.
Cholesterol is a substance produced by the liver to insulate nerves and make cell membranes. Since the body already produces cholesterol, adding excess cholesterol to the body through food can be detrimental.
There are two types of cholesterol, HDL (the “good” type) and LDL (the “bad” type). HDL is important to your health and serves as heart protection by carrying cholesterol away from your arteries. Too much LDL can clog your arteries and lead to a heart attack or stroke. The good news is you can begin to take control of the bad cholesterol and improve the good cholesterol with lifestyle choices such as:
- Eating foods low in saturated fat and cholesterol.
- Exercising regularly.
- Maintaining a healthy weight.
Unfortunately, not all people can improve their cholesterol levels on their own. Some lipid disorders require specialized treatment by experts familiar with their management. It is important to receive regular cholesterol screenings, especially if you are at high risk for cardiovascular disease, so your health care provider can recognize a problem early and determine a path of treatment to bring you back to your heart-healthy best.
Penn offers the region’s largest and most well known program for the diagnosis and management of lipid disorders. The lipid disorders program is part of a larger preventive cardiovascular medicine program designed to benefit patients who have existing heart or cardiovascular disease, or are at high risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
The Penn Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine and Lipid Disorders Program is designed to benefit patients who have existing heart or cardiovascular disease, or who are at high risk of cardiovascular disease due to:
- Family history of heart disease, stroke, or cardiovascular disease
- High LDL cholesterol
- High triglycerides
- Low HDL cholesterol
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes, glucose intolerance, or “metabolic syndrome”
- Obesity
The program's multidisciplinary approach helps you assess, manage and reduce your risk for heart disease and stroke. Using specially designed tests and active medical management, our team of physicians, nurses and health care professionals accurately determine your risk and guide you toward a medical program to maintain a healthy heart.
The program’s services include:
- Detailed cardiovascular risk assessment.
- Detailed analysis and diagnosis of lipid disorders.
- Blood tests to identify persons at high risk for heart disease and stroke.
- Non-invasive tests, such as Electron Beam CT and multislice CT scanning for the determination of cardiovascular risk.
- In-depth personal nutrition counseling by a registered dietician.
- Review and consideration of potential non-prescription therapies.
- Comprehensive individual programs designed to fit the patient's lifestyle.
- Expert advice regarding the use of lipid modifying medications when needed.
- Access to clinical trials of the newest agents for lipid disorders and prevention of cardiovascular disease.
Penn’s Lipid Disorders Program is available at two sites:
Penn Presbyterian Medical Center:
Pennsylvania Hospital:
To learn how Penn Cardiac Care physicians can help you develop a personalized cardiovascular risk assessment program, call 1-800-789-PENN (7366) or you can request an appointment online.
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