The EAS FHSC Investigators at the FHSC Coordinating Centre at Imperial College London present their article titled: Overweight, obesity, and cardiovascular disease in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: the EAS FH Studies Collaboration registry that was published today in the European Heart Journal.
This study asks: how frequent is obesity in patients with FH globally, and does it affect their risk of cardiovascular disease?
This study from 6275 children and 29 265 adults provides evidence that obesity is common in those with HeFH globally and is associated with a more severe hyperlipidaemia phenotype and greater likelihood of CVD from childhood.
Given their already augmented risk of ASCVD, patients with FH require intensive lifestyle management aimed at maintaining a healthy weight, in addition to managing lipids with medication, to reduce their lifetime risk of CVD events. Furthermore, these findings reinforce the need for early diagnosis in HeFH including childhood screening to not only manage lipids with pharmacological approaches but to adopt lifestyles that reduce the risk of developing additional cardiovascular risk factors.
A holistic approach, integrating body weight management with LDL-C-lowering treatments, should be used to improve cardiovascular outcomes in people with FH.
