Table of Contents

1. What is the relationship between lipids and risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality? Kevin C Maki; 2. Framingham risk scoring or risk factor counting: which is more sensitive and how do I use this information to determine patient-specific lipid goals? Neil Stone; 3. What is the metabolic syndrome, how do I treat it, and is it a high risk condition? Kathleen Wynne; 4. Should all patients admitted to hospital with an acute coronary syndrome initiate statin therapy? Peter H. Jones; 5. What are CAD risk equivalents and how did these clinical entities come to be so defined? Michael Clearfield; 6. When should children and adolescents be screened for dyslipidemia and how should they be treated? Stephen R. Daniels; 7. Do statins reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in women? How does lipid management in women differ from that in men? Emma Meagher; 8. In high and very high risk patients, is it true that when it comes to LDL-C, lower is better? Can a serum LDL-C be driven too low? Michael H. Davidson; 9. Why do statins place patients at risk for myalgia, myopathy, and rhabdomyolysis? What is the risk for these complications and, if encountered, how should they be managed? Does coenzyme Q supplementation have a role in relieving myalgia? Peter Toth; 10. What are the so-called pleiotropic effects of statins, and do they make a difference in cardiovascular outcomes? James K. Liao; 11. What specifically constitutes therapeutic lifestyle change? Do diet, weight loss, and exercise meaningfully impact serum lipid levels and risk for cardiovascular disease? Margo A. Denke; 12. What is non-HDL? When should patients be treated with a fibrate? How do fibrates work and do they significantly impact risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality? Can fibrates be combined with a statin? James McKenney; 13. In diabetic patients, do the thiazolidinedione drugs beneficially impact lipid levels? Are these changes in lipids correlated with cardiovascular benefit in clinical trials? W Virgil Brown; 14. How does niacin work? When should I use it and what can be done to reduce the frequency and severity of flushing? Does niacin augment the capacity of a statin to reduce cardiovascular events? Eliot A. Brinton; 15. Which nutraceuticals and dietary supplements have proven efficacy for impacting serum lipids and cardiovascular outcomes? Penny Kris-Etherton; 16. Why do lipid lowering agents affect serum transaminase levels? Are these drugs toxic to the liver and can they precipitate liver failure? Arun Sanyal; 17. Should I treat a low serum HDL-C? What specific lifestyle changes and drugs can be used to raise a low HDL-C? Antonio M. Gotto; 18. What is familial hypercholesterolemia and how should it be treated? Patrick Moriarty; 19. Should I measure serum levels of lipoprotein(a)? Why is it believed to be atherogenic? If it is elevated, how should it be treated? Marlys Koschinsky; 20. What is advanced lipid testing? Which patients should have this done and how do I decide which test is most appropriate for my patient? William Cromwell; 21. Should we treat dyslipidemia in the elderly? Is there an upper age limit to instituting lipid-lowering therapy? Jennifer Robinson; 22. What do I do with statin therapy in the patient with renal failure? Domenic Sica; 23. Do diuretics and beta-blockers adversely affect components of the lipid profile and, if so, how is this best managed? Daniel J. Wilson; Abbreviations; General index.

About the Author

PP Toth, Sterling Rock Falls Clinic, and University of Illinois College of Medicine, Peoria, Illinois, USA; DA Sica, Section of Clinical Pharmacology and Hypertension, Division of Nephrology, Virginia Commonwealth University Health System, Richmond, Virginia, USA.