Pediatric Lipid Screening
A Crucial Step in Preventing Early Cardiovascular Disease
Pediatric lipid screening is when children have a blood test measuring their cholesterol or lipid levels. It’s typically done in the lab of a pediatrician’s office. This test measures a child’s risk for early heart disease.
When should my child have pediatric lipid screening done?
In 2011, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) recommended lipid screening for all children between the ages of 9 and 11, with repeat screening between ages of 17 to 21. For children with a family history of early heart attack, stroke, or familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), it’s recommended they are tested at age 2. This is fully supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Even with these clear recommendations data shows only 2-22% of children are having lipid screens between the ages of 9 and 11.
Currently, there are no guidelines in childhood for testing another form of cholesterol called lipoprotein(a), also known as Lp(a).
Why should my child go through pediatric lipid screening?
Checking lipid levels is the earliest and best way to check your child’s risk for early heart disease. If a high LDL (often referred to as the “bad” cholesterol) is found early in life, starting early treatment gives your child the best chance of preventing early heart attack, stroke, or death.
An early lipid screen may also uncover a genetic disease called familial hypercholesterolemia (FH). FH is a common, life-threatening genetic condition that causes high LDL cholesterol, affecting 1 in 250 people. If present, immediate family members should also have a cholesterol test to check for FH. This is known as family cascade screening.
We know that children with FH, who have very high LDL cholesterol, can build up cholesterol in their arteries in childhood. This is called atherosclerosis. But there is good news! If caught early this can be treated and children can prevent early heart disease. The important thing is to get the FH diagnosis early. Research shows that if you lower your LDL in childhood with the proper treatment, you can decrease the risk for disease to the same as the general population without FH.
I have more questions. What can I do?
If your child’s doctor does not want to order a lipid screen for your child, or if you have received the results and don’t understand them, we are here to help you with the next steps.
Experts at the Family Heart Foundation Care Navigation Center are ready to answer all your questions – at no cost to you.
Family Heart Foundation’s LEAD Pediatric Program
To address the urgent need to implement pediatric lipid screening in all children in the US, the Family Heart Foundation launched the Leveraging Evidence And Data (LEAD) for Pediatric Cholesterol Screening Program.
The program uses Family Heart Foundation’s expertise, research, relationships with experts in the field, and community partnerships to raise awareness and save lives by ensuring all children have lipid screens between the ages of 9 and 11, a repeat screening between 17 and 21, and at age 2 if there’s a family history of early heart disease.
Thank you for the generous support of our corporate sponsor.
