Cardiovascular Risk Assessment

At the Pulse Cardiology Center, the foundation of preventive cardiology begins with knowing the patient’s basic risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). After assessing the risk factors, the doctor informs the patient about the best ways to reduce the risk, whether it is a matter of lifestyle management or a decision on the inclusion and intensity of pharmacological therapy.

Do you know your cardiovascular risk?

Cardiologists’ associations recommend that it is necessary to make the most accurate and yet as simple as possible assessment of the overall cardiovascular (CV) risk of illness or death due to cardiovascular disease.

Individuals with insulin resistance or diabetes, in combination with one or more cardiovascular risk factors, have an even higher risk of heart disease or stroke. With timely controls, precise diagnosis and professional management of cardiovascular risk factors, patients with diabetes can avoid or delay the development of heart and blood vessel diseases. The Pulse Cardiology Center’s medical team will perform periodic tests to assess whether you have developed any of these risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease.

The Pulse Cardiology Center performs:

• Cardiovascular risk assessment for diabetes
• Cardiovascular risk assessment for high cholesterol
• Cardiovascular risk assessment for obesity
• Cardiovascular risk assessment for hypertension

How to use a score card

The 10-year risk of a fatal cardiovascular event is estimated. Cardio vascular risk can be:

Very high cardiovascular risk: SCORE 10% and higher indicates proven cardiovascular disease using non-invasive or invasive testing.

Diabetes mellitus with one or more CV risks and / or damage to target organs

Severe chronic kidney disease

High cardiovascular risk: SCORE 5% and higher and less than 10%, indicates a significant increase in individual risk factors such as:

• Family dyslipidemia and severe hypertension
• Diabetes mellitus without risk CV factors or organ damage
• Moderate chronic kidney disease

Moderate cardiovascular risk: SCORE 1% and higher and less than 5%.

Most middle-aged people belong to this category.

Low cardiovascular risk: SCORE less than 1%.

CV risk may be higher than the one in the SCORE chart for people who are inactive or obese, for socially vulnerable people, for people with low HDL cholesterol and high triglycerides, etc.

The recommendation for people with a low (<5%) 10-year risk is control and lifestyle changes, and people with the highest (> 20%) 10-year risk would, in addition to lifestyle changes, would be subjected to pharmacological therapy to reduce the risk or results of coronary calcium and the treatment decision would be made.

We pay special attention to asymptomatic individuals with preclinical atherosclerotic lesions. Clinical cardiac examination, examination of blood and urine, ECG, ECHO of the heart, Doppler ultrasound of blood vessels, holter monitor, cardiac stress test and other diagnostic methods contribute to the detection of asymptomatic damage to the heart, brain, kidneys, fundus oculi, small and large blood vessels.

Cardiovascular disease and diabetes

The following statistics clearly and loudly show that there is a strong correlation between cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and diabetes.

• At least 68 percent of people over the age of 65 with diabetes die from some form of heart disease; 16% die of stroke.
• Adults with diabetes are 2 to 4 times more likely to die from heart disease than adults without diabetes.
• Diabetes is considered one of the seven main risk factors that can be controlled when it comes to cardiovascular disease.

Why are people with diabetes at increased risk of CVD?

Diabetes is treatable, but even when glucose levels are under control, it greatly increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. This is because people with diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, may have the following conditions that contribute to the risk of developing cardiovascular disease:

• High blood pressure (hypertension)

High blood pressure has long been recognized as a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Studies show a positive link between hypertension and insulin resistance. When patients have both hypertension and diabetes, which is a common combination, the risk of cardiovascular disease doubles.

• Elevated cholesterol and triglycerides

Patients with diabetes often have unhealthy cholesterol levels, including high LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, low HDL (“good”) cholesterol, and high triglycerides. This triad of poor lipid counts often occurs in patients with premature coronary heart disease. It is also characteristic of a lipid disorder associated with insulin resistance lcalled atherogenic dyslipidemia or diabetic dyslipidemia in those patients with diabetes. Learn more about cholesterol abnormalities related to diabetes.

• Obesity

Obesity is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and is strongly associated with insulin resistance. Weight loss can improve cardiovascular risk, reduce insulin levels and increase insulin sensitivity. Obesity and insulin resistance are also associated with other risk factors, including high blood pressure.

• Lack of physical activity

Physical inactivity is another major risk factor for insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease. Exercising and losing weight can prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes, lower blood pressure and help reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. It is likely that any type of moderate and / or intense intensity, aerobic physical activity – whether sports, housework, gardening or work-related physical activity – is beneficial.

For overall cardiovascular health, it is recommended:

At least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity per week (or equivalent combination of moderate-intensity and high-intensity activity), plus moderate- to high-intensity muscle strengthening activity for at least 2 days per week for additional health benefits.

• Poorly controlled blood sugars (too high) or outside normal limits

Diabetes can lead to a rise in blood sugar to dangerous levels. Medications may be needed to treat blood sugar.

• Smoking

Smoking brings individuals, whether they have diabetes or not, a higher risk of heart disease and stroke. Learn how to eradicate that habit.

Although current techniques best predict long-term risk of cardiovascular disease, biomarker strategies are being developed to predict short-term events, and other imaging techniques such as coronary CT angiography and vascular MRI promise to identify the initial plaque. Validation and incorporation of the technique into clinical practice is vital to moving CVD risk assessment to the next level.