Lipid Disorders Clinic

The London Medical Lipid Disorders Clinic provides diagnosis, treatment and support for patients with lipid disorders including the genetic familial hyperlipidaemias (FH) and the dyslipidaemias (low HDL, high LDL and raised triglyceride) that commonly accompany diabetes and inherited tendencies to early heart attack.

Patients should be referred even if they have what appears to be a normal cholesterol level if they have:

• A history of a heart attack, stroke, transient ischaemic attack, coronary artery stent or angina
• Erectile dysfunction
• Diabetes or high blood pressure
• Claudication
• A family history of premature cardiovascular disease
• A history of smoking
• An increasing waistline

Echocardiographers, vascular technicians and a specialist clinical dietitian assist the Consultants. Our initial protocol includes the London Medical Heart Comprehensive assessment, which carries out profiling of lipids and their associated molecules, e.g. apolipoprotein A1 and B, lipoprotein particle number, small dense LDL fraction, llipoprotein (a) particle number, myeloperoxidase, and Lp-PLA2 amongst others. The assessment also investigates carotid intima media thickness and coronary artery calcification score.

The careful and detailed assessment of comprehensive biochemical, genetic and imaging data allows for treatment to be tailored more precisely to the risks of cardiovascular events in an individual patient.

Managing the side-effects of the treatments used is an important part of our work. To this end we can employ special gene tests and expertise to help a patient stay on therapy that is life saving and without intolerable side-effects.