Familial Hypercholesterolemia Treatment Guide

Familial hypercholesterolemia is a genetic condition that causes elevated levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in the body. Patients with this disorder have a high risk of developing cardiovascular disease, and they often experience heart attacks at a younger age than the general population. In fact, research has shown patients with familial hypercholesterolemia have five times the risk of cardiovascular disease compared to individuals with cholesterol levels less than 130mg/dL. Men with this condition develop cardiovascular disease an average of twenty years earlier than those at normal risk, and some of these men may even have heart disease in their twenties. For women with familial hypercholesterolemia, cardiovascular disease appears as much as thirty years earlier than it does in women without this condition. In addition to elevated cholesterol, common symptoms of familial hypercholesterolemia include cholesterol deposits on the skin, eyelids, tendons, and cornea. These deposits usually have a waxy appearance. Some patients with this disease may experience chest pain (angina). A simple blood test is all that is needed to diagnose familial hypercholesterolemia.