Cardiac Risk Assessment
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What is a cardiac risk assessment?
This is a group of tests and health factors that have been proven to indicate your chance of having a cardiovascular event such as a heart attack or stroke. They have been refined to indicate the degree of risk: borderline, intermediate, or high risk.
Perhaps the most important indicators for cardiac risk are your personal health history. These include:
- Age
- Family history
- Weight
- Cigarette smoking
- Blood pressure
- Diet
- Exercise, physical activity
- Diabetes
- Pre-existing heart disease, or already having had a heart attack
There are some imaging tests that may be used in cardiac risk assessment. Non-invasive tests may include, for example, an electrocardiogram (ECG, EKG) or a stress test, also called ECG stress test or metabolic stress test. Invasive tests may also be used to evaluate for the presence of cardiovascular disease (CVD), but they are usually used for diagnostic purposes in people with signs and symptoms and not for risk assessment. Examples include an angiography/arteriography and cardiac catheterization.
The lipid panel is the most important blood test for cardiac risk assessment.
View Sources
Sources Used in Current Review
(9/30/2019) Blood Tests to Determine Risk of Coronary Artery Disease. Cleveland Clinic. Available online at https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diagnostics/16792-blood-tests-to-determine-risk-of-coronary-artery-disease. Accessed November 2020.
Baer, J. (2017 August 11). AACE and EAS Lipid Guidelines. American College of Cardiology. Available online at https://www.acc.org/latest-in-cardiology/articles/2017/08/11/08/35/aace-and-eas-lipid-guidelines. Accessed March 2019.
(2016 November 13). Statin Use for the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Adults. US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement. Available online at https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/document/RecommendationStatementFinal/statin-use-in-adults-preventive-medication. Accessed November 2020.
Genzen, J. (2018 August, Updated). Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD) Traditional Risk Markers – Cardiovascular Disease Risk Markers (Traditional). ARUP Consult. Available online at https://arupconsult.com/content/cardiovascular-disease-traditional-risk-markers. Accessed March 2019.
Lloyd-Jones, D. et. al. (2017 October). 2017 Focused Update of the 2016 ACC Expert Consensus Decision Pathway on the Role of Non-Statin Therapies for LDL-Cholesterol Lowering in the Management of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease Risk, A Report of the American College of Cardiology Task Force on Expert Consensus Decision Pathways. JACC v 70 (14) October 2017. Available online at http://www.onlinejacc.org/content/70/14/1785. Accessed March 2019.
Jackson, E. (2017 September 5). 2017 ACC Recommendations for Non-Statin Therapy. American College of Cardiology. Available online at https://www.acc.org/latest-in-cardiology/ten-points-to-remember/2017/09/05/10/03/2017-focused-update-of-the-2016-acc-expert-consensus-nonstatin. Accessed March 2019.
Sources Used in Previous Reviews
Executive Summary of the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III). JAMA (2001) 285: 2486-2497.
Clinical Chemistry: Theory, Analysis, Correlation. 3rd Edition. Lawrence A. Kaplan and Amadeo J. Pesce, St. Louis, MO. Mosby, 1996.
Clinical Chemistry: Principles, Procedures, Correlations. Michael L. Bishop, Janet L. Duben-Engelkirk, Edward P. Fody. Lipincott Williams & Wilkins, 4th Edition.
American Heart Association. Heart Attack/Coronary Heart Disease Risk Assessment. Available online at http://www.heart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3003499. Accessed October 2008.
(July 3, 2008) MayoClinic.com. Coronary artery disease: Tests and Diagnosis. Available online at http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/coronary-artery-disease/DS00064/DSECTION=tests-and-diagnosis. Accessed October 2008.
(March 30, 2007) MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. Coronary Heart Disease. Available online at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/007115.htm. Accessed October 2008.
(May 2001) Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III). PDF available for download at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov. Accessed October 2008.
American Heart Association. 2013 Prevention Guidelines Tools: CV Risk Calculator. Available online at http://my.americanheart.org/professional/StatementsGuidelines/PreventionGuidelines/Prevention-Guidelines_UCM_457698_SubHomePage.jsp. Accessed June 2014.
2013 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Assessment of Cardiovascular Risk. Circulation. Published online November 12, 2013. Available online at http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2013/11/11/01.cir.0000437741.48606.98.full.pdf+html. Accessed June 2014.
Cleveland Clinic. Blood Tests to Determine Risk of Coronary Artery Disease. Available online at http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/diagnostics-testing/laboratory-tests/blood-tests-to-determine-risk-of-coronary-artery-disease.aspx. Accessed June 2014.
Cleveland Clinic. Electrocardiograph Tests. Available online at http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/diagnostics-testing/electrocardiograph-tests/default.aspx. Accessed June 2014.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. What Are Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors? Available online at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/hd/. Accessed June 2014.
Mayo Clinic. How important is cholesterol ratio? Available online at http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/expert-answers/cholesterol-ratio/FAQ-20058006. Accessed July 2014.
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