Advanced Lipoprotein Fingerprinting

By Author: Ibrahim Machiwala
Total Articles: 463
Comment this article

Advanced Lipoprotein Fingerprinting is a more precise cholesterol test that allows doctors to identify health risks that traditional screens miss. Doctors now have a precise reading not only of a patient's cholesterol levels but other independent risk factors known to be associated with heart disease.

The process separates lipids in the blood to create a detailed cholesterol profile that helps doctors identify patients at risk for heart disease. The detailed graph allows a doctor to precisely analyze a patient's overall risk profile and monitor the effectiveness of a diet or treatment regimen.

This advanced analytical techniques that can help doctors diagnose early warning signs for coronary heart disease, which kills more than 2,600 Americans a day, according to the American Heart Association. High LDL cholesterol is a major cause of coronary heart disease, according to the National Cholesterol Education Program.

Aiming to identify early risk factors, the National Cholesterol Education Program issued guidelines calling for more comprehensive cholesterol screens as well as other risk factors not included ...
... in the cholesterol screen.

Early detection, particularly in youth, is the key to slowing down the development of heart disease in later life. Advanced cholesterol screening is a valuable tool that is gaining acceptance among medical insurers.

Texas A&M University researchers created Advanced Lipoprotein Fingerprinting as a more precise cholesterol test that allows doctors to identify health risks that traditional screens miss. LipidLabs further refined the Advanced Lipoprotein Fingerprinting Process and made Advanced Lipoprotein Fingerprinting available for commercialization. LipidLabs' results translate to more accurate and specific data on which to make clinical judgments and guide patient therapy and prevention at reasonable costs.

Clinical Highlights:

1. Screen men over age 34 and women over age 44 every five years.

2. The decision to screen men age 20 to 34 years, women age 20 to 44 years and anyone over 75 years should be based on individual preferences of patient and provider.

3. Measure cholesterol fractionation and provide nutrition and exercise assessment every five years. If likelihood of follow-up is low and patient is not fasting, consider checking total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.

General Awareness Activities:

Employer, School and Community Education Awareness Activities
Many educational and medical individuals are playing very impressive and crucial role by putting their efforts in helping to increase the number of children and adults to present themselves for appropriate lipid screenings.
Awareness initiative programming conducted includes:

Posters for company bulletin boards
General screening information "tents" for tables in reception areas, cafeterias, employee lounges, locker rooms, and other such places
Incentives to increase compliance with and awareness of guideline screening recommendations Information on the importance of regular lipid screening can be included as part of a larger health promotion/disease prevention initiative which includes not only cholesterol and healthy lifestyles but aware people of heart diseases and appropriate health care utilization as well.

Health care providers should:

Establish a process to identify those needing cholesterol screening
Make educational brochures available at time of visit
Select educational materials based on a nutrition and exercise assessment
Utilize a system encouraging patients to attend classes if laboratory results suggest benefit from changing nutritional and/or exercise behaviors.

Doctors somethimes also make visits to offices and schools for conducting lipid screenings.

Total Cholesterol >200; LDL >130; HDL200?
Individuals with a total cholesterol less than or equal to 200 mg/dL (and HDL-cholesterol of 40 mg/dL or above or triglycerides less than or equal to 200) have a desirable cholesterol level are advised to repeat cholesterol fractionation in five years.