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It could save a lot of money in health care.
Staying healthy often feels like a numbers game.
For decades, millions have relied on annual blood tests to track heart health.
But a new discovery suggests we might be tracking the wrong metric entirely.
A better test
Doctors routinely check bad cholesterol to decide if someone needs medication. However, Northwestern Medicine researchers found a much better tool called apolipoprotein B, or apoB.
The study revealed that checking apoB levels helps doctors better protect patients from heart attacks and strokes by identifying those who need stronger medication.
Ciaran Kohli-Lynch, a lead author at Northwestern, explained the financial and health benefits. “We found that apoB testing to intensify cholesterol-lowering medication would prevent more heart attacks and strokes than current practice, and that these health benefits were achieved at a cost that represents good value for U.S. healthcare payers,” Kohli-Lynch said.
According to ScienceDaily, this marks the first in-depth analysis of the cost-effectiveness of the test, showing that it represents good value for healthcare spending.
Counting the particles
High cholesterol, especially high levels of LDL, is a primary driver of heart disease. According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular diseases, which include heart disease, are the world’s leading cause of death, claiming roughly 18 million lives annually.
Standard checks often miss the full picture. “Research strongly shows that apolipoprotein B (apoB) is better at identifying who is at risk because it counts the total number of harmful particles in the blood,” Kohli-Lynch noted.
Clinics rarely order this test because it requires an extra laboratory assay, adding expense and inconvenience.
Still, the team wanted to see if the switch was truly worth it. “Our study asked: Is it worth spending extra money to use apoB instead of LDL to guide treatment intensification?” Kohli-Lynch said.
Simulating the results
By running a computer model that mapped 250,000 American adults who qualified for cholesterol-lowering drugs but did not have heart disease, the scientists were able to compare traditional tests with the new apoB standard.
When a virtual patient failed to meet treatment goals, the system intensified treatment with stronger statins.
The results were clear. Tracking apoB saved more lives and reduced medical complications over a lifetime.
This comes as medical groups like the American Heart Association have recently urged younger people to start therapy earlier. “This means it is increasingly important to accurately identify who would benefit most from intensive treatment,” Kohli-Lynch concluded.
