The questions answered in this podcast are listed below. They were compiled by GPs and health professionals around Australia.

1. Why do we need new guidelines and the new calculator?
2. Has the guidelines changed anything about the populations we are to screen or to be particularly careful about?
3. How do people with significant mental health issues fitted in?
4. What sort of family history becomes important?
5. If a patient has had atrial fibrillation, but for many years now they don’t, how would you score them as positive or negative?
6. Can you tell us a little bit about coronary artery calcium score, whom we use it for and how does it factor in this new guideline and calculator?
7. Can you comment on soft plugs not being picked up in coronary artery calcium scores?
8. What happens when you plug a patient into the calculator, you now come up with a five year risk not 10. Have the numbers changed a little in terms of what is high risk and intermediate risk? Can you take us through that.
9. What are the various targets, both for blood pressure targets and lipid targets for your intermediate and higher risk patients?
10. Having a non-zero coronary artery calcium score, does that make it a primary prevention situation or a secondary prevention situation?
11. How do we as GPs do with patients with any form of inflammation, ulcerative colitis, arthritis? And do they factor in as increasing the risk for heart disease?
12. Can you talk to us briefly about how to do the scale on the calculator better?
13. Can you comment on lipid targets?
14. Is there a differentiation between affiliate and hydrophilic settings?
15. What are your key messages?

Guest: Prof Clara Chow AM, Cardiologist

Host: Dr David Lim, GP and Medical Educator

Total time: 31 mins

Recommended resources:

• How to diagnose FH | FH Australasia Network
• Calculator | FH Australasia Network
• Detecting familial hypercholesterolaemia in general practice | RACGP