HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA: Causes, Risk Factors, Diagnosis & Treatment

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HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA: A LOOMING RISK FACTOR CAUSING CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

INTRODUCTION:

Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance found in the cell membrane and is transported in the blood plasma of all animals.

Our body needs cholesterol to a certain level to work properly, but if excess of cholesterol enters blood, it can make sticky deposits to the walls of the arteries leading to its narrowing and blockage.

High cholesterol shoots up the risk of getting various cardiovascular diseases such as Atherosclerosis, Cardiac Arrest, Stroke, Heart Attack, etc. ⁴

TYPES OF CHOLESTROL: ³

There are two types of cholesterol viz., Low density lipoprotein (LDL) and High density lipoprotein (HDL)

LDL is harmful Cholesterol and HDL is the useful one.

Hypercholesterolemia indicates that, HDL is decreased and LDL is increased.

DESIRABLE LEVELS OF CHOLESTROL: ⁴

200mg/dl is the desirable level.

High but Manageable: 200mg/dl-239mg/dl

High- above 240mg/dl

CAUSES OF HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA:⁴

Heredity: High levels of cholesterol may be inherited because genes may influence the metabolism of LDL (bad) cholesterol.
Foods high in saturated fats and Cholesterol: This is the most common cause of hypercholesterolemia as excess of saturated fats may modestly increase LDL (bad) cholesterol level.
Other diseases: Some people suffering from diabetes may have high levels of cholesterol.
Lifestyle Changes: Changes in lifestyle has lead to decrease in exercise which may lead to increase in fat and cholesterol levels.

RISK FACTORS OF HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA⁴

Some important risk factors for high cholesterol are:

Obesity
Eating a diet high in saturated fat and trans fatty acids
Not getting enough exercise
Diabetes
Family history of heart diseases
High blood pressure
Drinking alcohol
Smoking

DIAGNOSIS OF HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA: ⁴

Blood test called as Lipoprotein profile is used to diagnose the cholesterol levels in the blood. Lipoprotein profile gives the information about total cholesterol, LDL, HDL and Triglycerides.

TREATMENT OF HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA: ¹

Initially the diet and exercise patterns are to be changed to check cholesterol levels. And if still the cholesterol levels remain high, the doctor prescribes medicines to lower it.

The widely used class of drugs is Statins.

STATINS are usually the drugs of choice as they are easy to take and have lesser interactions with other drugs.

Statins are HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors. HMG-CoA reductase is an enzyme located in liver tissues and it produces mevelonate which is a small molecule used in the synthesis of Cholesterol.

Side effects:

It includes inflammation of the muscles, joint pain, stomach upset, and liver damage.

Cotraindications:

Pregnancy and Lactation
Hypersensitive to statins
Hepatic or severe renal dysfunction.

Statins include:

References

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