Screening children at immunisation visits can identify familial hypercholesterolaemia

Screening children for familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) when they see their GP for routine childhood immunisations can identify those at high risk for inherited premature cardiovascular disease, as well as parents at risk, a UK primary care study has found.1

FH is a relatively common genetic disorder affecting around one in 250 people. It is associated with raised low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol throughout life, and premature atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease occurs in around one in four women and around half of men with heterozygous FH if they are not treated with statins.

Identifying young …