American College of Cardiology shares new guidance for treating ASCVD patients with elevated triglycerides

Anthony Vecchione | | Cardiovascular Business | Acute Coronary Syndromes
cholesterol.png

A new American College of Cardiology (ACC) expert consensus decision pathway (ECDP) highlights specialist recommendations on statin and triglyceride non-statin treatment options for the management of high-risk atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) patients with continuous hypertriglyceridemia.

The ECDP, published July 28 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, expands on the 2018 AHA/ACC guideline on the management of cholesterol, and includes information based on the recently published REDUCE-IT trial.

"After maximizing LDL-C lowering therapy, triglyceride lowering therapies may be considered to further lower ASCVD risk in patients with persistent hypertriglyceridemia," writing committee chair Salim S. Virani, MD, PhD, director of the Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Training Program at Baylor College of Medicine, and colleagues said in a prepared statement. "Therapies that have been demonstrated to improve cardiovascular outcomes in primary and secondary prevention are preferred, keeping in mind net benefit (balance of risk and harms) of those therapies."

The goal of the ACC panel was to address issues related to the use of statins and triglyceride risk-based non-statin therapies in patients with persistent hypertriglyceridemia including: defining persistent hypertriglyceridemia, addressing the role of lifestyle intervention before considering triglyceride risk-based non-statin therapies, identifying the role of statin therapy in patients with persistent hypertriglyceridemia, recognizing what patient populations should triglyceride risk-based non-statin therapies be considered and choosing the most effective triglyceride risk-based non-statin therapies.

The ECDP also stresses that lifestyle choices such as a heart-healthy diet, consistent physical activity, non-tobacco use, minimal alcohol consumption and maintaining a healthy weight level are key in reducing the risk of ASCVD. 

“Use of medical nutrition therapy and leveraging all members of the cardiovascular team, including dietitians, are important in the management of persistent hypertriglyceridemia,” the authors said in the same statement.

See the full ECDP here.

Anthony Vecchione

Related Content

Cardiologists reflect on developing primary PCI in face of criticism and pushback
IVUS-guided PCI reduces risks in patients with diabetes
Predicting sudden cardiac death after a heart attack may be impossible—for now
Payment cuts and beyond: Key takeaways for cardiologists from the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule
‘A huge win’: CMS significantly increases Medicare payments for cardiac CT
FDA clears AI tool that flags signs of heart disease in chest CT scans

Around the web

Health Imaging
Use of AI opportunistic screening in CT for cardiovascular disease

Ron Blankstein, MD, professor of radiology, Harvard Medical School, explains the use of artificial intelligence to detect heart disease in non-cardiac CT exams.

Health Imaging
New imaging protocols proposed to curb rise of cardiovascular infections

Eleven medical societies have signed on to a consensus statement aimed at standardizing imaging for suspected cardiovascular infections.

Radiology Business
What does radiology have to do with climate change?

Kate Hanneman, MD, explains why many vendors and hospitals want to lower radiology's impact on the environment. "Taking steps to reduce the carbon footprint in healthcare isn’t just an opportunity," she said. "It’s also a responsibility."