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Is Coronary Angiography An Effective Way To Detect Early Coronary Heart Disease?
Question: For a 36 year old man who has elevated cholesterol (under control with Lipitor) and has a significant family history of heart disease and is overweight would you say that cardiovascular screenings such as lifeline angio is a good idea? I wanted to get these screenings done at my own expense but my primary care doctor says he doesn't think it would be helpful despite the family history.
Brief Answer:
I would explain as follows:
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Welcome on HCM!
Regarding your concern, I would like to explain that your primary care doctor is right.
As you have several coronary risk factors (like dyslipidemia, heredity for CAD, overweight, etc), it is important to consider life-style modulation (frequent daily physical activity at least 1 hour daily, avoiding close smoking contacts, lowering body weight, etc) as well as a healthy diet (such as Mediterranean diet).
In your case it is important a frequent screening of coronary risk factors and also of the cardiovascular status.
Coming to this point a rationale option would be a noninvasive approach like coronary angio CT (investigating of total coronary calcium burden and potential coronary atherosclerotic lesions).
As long as you don't have any cardiac symptomatology, angiography would be considered out of discussion.
Meanwhile, try to keep under control your blood lipid profile, blood pressure values, blood glucose, and all the above mentioned recommendations.
Hope to have been helpful to you!
In case of further uncertainties, do not hesitate to ask me.
Kind regards,
Dr. Iliri
I would explain as follows:
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Welcome on HCM!
Regarding your concern, I would like to explain that your primary care doctor is right.
As you have several coronary risk factors (like dyslipidemia, heredity for CAD, overweight, etc), it is important to consider life-style modulation (frequent daily physical activity at least 1 hour daily, avoiding close smoking contacts, lowering body weight, etc) as well as a healthy diet (such as Mediterranean diet).
In your case it is important a frequent screening of coronary risk factors and also of the cardiovascular status.
Coming to this point a rationale option would be a noninvasive approach like coronary angio CT (investigating of total coronary calcium burden and potential coronary atherosclerotic lesions).
As long as you don't have any cardiac symptomatology, angiography would be considered out of discussion.
Meanwhile, try to keep under control your blood lipid profile, blood pressure values, blood glucose, and all the above mentioned recommendations.
Hope to have been helpful to you!
In case of further uncertainties, do not hesitate to ask me.
Kind regards,
Dr. Iliri
Note: For further queries related to coronary artery disease and prevention, click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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