Cholesterol guidelines will triple numbers taking drugs

The US National Institutes of Health, through its national cholesterol education programme, has issued sweeping new clinical practice and management guidelines designed to lower cholesterol levels.

The guidelines call for more aggressive diagnosis and treatment of hypercholesterolaemia and for a change from the acceptable, healthy level of high density lipoprotein (HDL) from a minimum of 35 mg/dl (0.91 mmol/l) to 40 mg/dl (1.03 mmol/l). They also endorse the wider use of lipid lowering drugs and lifestyle changes.

The new guidelines will substantially increase the number of Americans considered to be at risk of heart disease and expand the number who will receive dietary and drug treatment. The number of Americans who …