By Katarina A. Lewczyk | Date published: October 28, 2024
Brigid Carlson and Khanh-Van Tran Share Insights on New Cardiovascular Risk Calculator
With heart disease being the leading cause of death for both men and women worldwide, the American Heart Association has introduced a new cardiovascular risk calculator aimed at preventing and better-predicting heart disease. Brigid Carlson, MD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, recently discussed the new PREVENT risk calculator, which updated the American College of Cardiology’s Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD) calculator, with UMass Chan news.
The new calculator can not only estimate the risk of heart disease, but also measure kidney function, and metabolic health, and can predict heart failure risk. Importantly, it also helps calculate who should receive prescribed lipid-lowering medication. “The design is really appealing, as it’s taking into account a lot more factors that we know are associated with cardiovascular disease,” said Carlson.
Additionally, Khanh-Van Tran, MD, PhD, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, shared insights into future developments focused on lowering cardiovascular risks.
“With the tools we have now, with RNA interference, some of the new gene editing technology, I think it’s an exciting time for lipid-lowering therapies that we can offer to patients to lower heart attack and stroke risk,” said Dr. Tran.