Why Lipoprotein (a) matters and how to get this checked

Heart disease (cardiovascular disease or CVD) isn’t the second or third cause of death, it is the leading cause of death worldwide

There are lots of well known interventions that can help reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease but there are also a few lesser known risks (read on to learn more on these!). 

High blood pressure, smoking, sedentary lifestyle and diabetes are all well known risk factors for CVD and Locke Medical are well positioned to assess and advise on these.

High cholesterol is also a silent, significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease and patients can be completely unaware of this until having a formal blood test. However, we now know more about cholesterol and that there are genetic conditions, present from birth and detectable on a blood test, that lead to significantly elevated accumulation of harmful types of cholesterol through life.

Lipoprotein (a) is a simple blood test offered at Locke. This is not routinely tested for by NHS GPs.

One example of these genetic conditions is the presence of lipoprotein (a) or Lp(a) and a simple blood test can be done to determine your level of this troublesome particle

Knowing that you have this genetic risk can enable preventative countermeasures with informed lifestyle and medicine decisions. This test is not currently routinely available at your NHS GP. If you would like to discuss this, or undertake this important screening test, please book in for an appointment with your Locke Medical GP.

If you find podcast format information best, please listen here:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6gnwSVCeeJCgVgL80WMrsd?si=u9REvcFgS1ixjpDSoHw0ZA