New Cholesterol Guidelines Push Testing Starting in the 30s

There are new recommended guidelines when it comes to cholesterol for the first time in almost a decade.

Cholesterol issues can put a person more at risk for a heart attack or stroke.

According to Dr. Jehan Riar, a board-certified primary care physician and associate medical director at Mercy Personal Physicians in Lutherville, the new guidelines suggest doctors should be stricter and more aggressive with cholesterol control much sooner in life—starting in the 30s.

Dr. Riar noted that more bloodwork should be completed during a patient’s annual exam.

“I started adding in my practice [testing for] lipoprotein(a). That’s a test that is done once in a lifetime, and it tells me your genetic risk of developing heart disease in the future, so if that comes back elevated, it helps us explain to you how we need to be more aggressive in your cholesterol control,” Dr. Riar said.

Another blood test, apolipoprotein B (ApoB), can help fine-tune a patient’s cholesterol management.

Dr. Riar explained that the tests are especially important for women because women show different cardiovascular symptoms than men, and they’re usually more vague.

View Mercy primary care physician Dr. Jehan Riar’s interview regarding women’s health and the latest cholesterol guidelines.