Hypercholesterolemia is defined as elevated blood cholesterol and is a major risk factor for atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. It has been suggested that a plasma cholesterol level be obtained every five years for an adult over 20 years of age. Risk factors that would increase the likelihood of hypercholesterolemia are male gender, family history of premature heart disease, hypertension, cigarette smoking, diabetes mellitus and severe obesity.
Although total plasma cholesterol is a good screening for hypercholesterolemia, persons with high total cholesterol levels (as determined by these home kits) should have a complete lipid profile performed by their physician. This is because total cholesterol is a combination of HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) and LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein). It has been shown that increased concentration of HDL is helpful in preventing hypercholesterolemia while increased LDL concentration is a determinant of hypercholesterolemia.
Most home test kits for cholesterol only determine the total cholesterol level, but they are extremely useful because if total cholesterol level is high, then it is likely that the LDL level will be high. These home test kits are also advantageous to the lipid profile performed by the physician because the are much less expensive.
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