Health Risk Calculators

Cardiovascular diseases such as ischemic heart disease, thrombosis, arterial hypertension with its complications – myocardial infarction and stroke – constitute a dynamic multistep process that is closely related to inflammation. It is well-known that CVD diseases rank first among all other diseases of mankind. Traditionally for making an accurate diagnosis, the patient must undergo a series of procedures, undergo lab tests so that the doctor can prescribe the necessary treatment. However, there is another way. Doctors can use cardiovascular risk assessment tools aimed at detecting the disease at an early stage. This time, not only will we consider different methods / risk calculators that are now used in clinical practice, but we will also make the corresponding calculations using a real example of a patient’s history. And, of course, let’s talk about why, given the presence of such intelligent systems, the CVD problem is still relevant. This article was last reviewed by Svetlana Baloban, Healsens, on January 24, 2020. This article was last modified on December 15, 2020. Why do you need cardiovascular risk assessments? Before proceeding to describe various calculation methods, let’s find out why they are needed at all. To begin with, we shall that most heart diseases develop completely asymptomatically over many years. In practice, it means that if one doesn’t feel any health problems, he or she simply does not go to the doctor unless a critical condition occurs. So, according to some estimates, 3.7 million Americans remain with undiagnosed heart disease. At the same time, the highest proportion of undiagnosed CVDs, which led to death from cardiovascular diseases, is among people aged 18–59 years. This is especially true when you consider that obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other risk factors are becoming more common at a young age. Second, understanding the risks allows for early diagnosis of CVD and, accordingly, preventive lifestyle interventions or treatment as needed. And thirdly, the assessment of risk factors can clearly demonstrate how the total risk changes if you switch to a healthier lifestyle. That is why, as early as in 1948, the Framingham Heart Study was initiated under the direction of the US National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. It was an ambitious medical research project that changed the medicine we know. As part of this study, the main risk factors for cardiovascular disease were identified. These include the following indicators: IN THIS ARTICLE 1 Why do you need cardiovascular risk assessments? 2 SCORE Risk Chart (Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation) 3 Framingham Risk Score 4 Reynolds Risk Score 5 ASCVD (Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease) Risk Score 6 PROCAM Score (Prospective Cardiovascular Munster Study) 7 QRISK (QRESEARCH Cardiovascular Risk Algorithm) 8 The 65yo Patient’s CVD Risks 9 Effectiveness of Using CVD Risk Scoring RELATED ARTICLES Valuable information has also been obtained on the role of cholesterol, age, gender, and psychological problems. During this time, the risk assessment has changed and developed significantly. In this article, we will analyze what cardiovascular risk assessment means and what calculators are used now in medical practice. SCORE Risk Chart (Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation) The European guidelines for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention recommend the use of modified SCORE risk charts. SCORE estimates the 10-year risk of fatal and non-fatal CVDs such as myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular disease, and congestive heart failure. The first Joint Working Group of European societies on coronary prevention used a simple risk chart. For their calculations, they considered the following categories: Then, the diagram became more complex in order to assess risks more accurately. So, in addition to total cholesterol, the ratio of cholesterol to HDL cholesterol was also taken into account in risk assessments. In addition, given the geographic variability in cardiovascular risk across Europe, two SCORE charts have been developed for countries with high and low CVD risk. Countries with low risk include countries such as Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, San Marino , Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Countries at high risk of CVD: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Montenegro, Morocco, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Tunisia and Turkey. And the group of countries with a very high risk (note that the diagrams may underestimate the risk in these countries) included such countries as: Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Egypt, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, North Macedonia , Moldova, Russian Federation, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Due to this SCORE scale, the following cardiovascular diseases can be detected: stroke, myocardial infarction, pulmonary embolism, dissecting aortic aneurysm. Framingham Risk Score The Framingham Risk Scale (FRS) determines the presence of diseases such as angina pectoris, coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, stroke. Like the SCORE scale, this system opens the door for making a forecast for the next 10 years. This scale was developed in North America. Thus, NCEP 4 recommends the Framingham Risk Score for cardiovascular risk assessment. You can also calculate it by yourself. The total risk on the Framingham scale is defined as: A value over 30% indicates a very high risk of cardiovascular disease. A 10-year risk estimate can be obtained as a percentage, which is then used to make decisions about disease prevention. This assessment is also evolving. For example, in 2009 CCS added additional risks to the Framingham risk scale. It included a family history of coronary heart disease in a first-line relative. It takes into account male first-degree relative younger than 55 years and female first-degree relative younger than 65 years old. For elderly patients, sensitive C-reactive protein results can also help to reclassify risks. Reynolds Risk Score If you are healthy and do not have diabetes, the Reynolds Risk Score is designed for your cardiovascular risk assessment. It may predict your risk of heart attack, stroke, or other serious heart diseases over the next 10 years. The risk calculation is designed for people aged 45 and over. The scale assesses the following risk factors: gender, age, systolic blood pressure, total and