Lipid panel results

My lipid panel results arrived today and these are the results.

Cholesterol-233
HDL-81
LDL-119
VLDL- 9

I am a 56 year old male that engages in 3.5 hours of daily (run/bike) sustained aerobics but has a "sweet tooth".  

Is the Cholesterol too high?  Do I need to modify my diet?

Thanks you

James

[Barbarella]

I'm not a doctor, but they look excellent to me.  Your HDL is awsome.

If your doctor thought otherwise I'm sure you would have heard from him.

[James426]

The word on the street is anything over 200 total cholesterol in bad, bad.  Many also say the higher the HDL the better, but does a total cholesterol of 230 become not a concern when an HDL is over 80?  I am a bit confused.

Thanks for your reply.  I need to get to the bottom of this one!

James

[FLBrat]

Cholesterol levels are measured in milligrams (mg) of cholesterol per deciliter (dL) of blood. To interpret your test results, use these general guidelines.

Total cholesterol
Below 200 mg/dL Desirable
200-239 mg/dL Borderline high
240 mg/dL and above High



LDL cholesterol
Below 70 mg/dL Optimal for people at very high risk of heart disease
Below 100 mg/dL Optimal for people at risk of heart disease
100-129 mg/dL Near optimal
130-159 mg/dL Borderline high
160-189 mg/dL High
190 mg/dL and above Very high



HDL cholesterol
Below 40 mg/dL Poor
40-59 mg/dL Better
60 mg/dL and above Best



Triglycerides
Below 150 mg/dL Desirable
150-199 mg/dL Borderline high
200-499 mg/dL High
500 or above Very high

LDL targets differ
Because LDL cholesterol is closely associated with heart disease, it's the main focus of cholesterol-lowering treatment. But it's not as simple as the chart may appear. Your target LDL number can vary, depending on your underlying risk of heart disease.

Most people should aim for an LDL level below 130 mg/dL. If you have other risk factors for heart disease, your target LDL may be below 100 mg/dL. If you're at very high risk of heart disease, you may need to aim for an LDL level below 70 mg/dL.

So who's considered very high risk? You might be if you've had a heart attack or if you have diabetes. In addition, two or more of the following risk factors might also place you in the very high risk group:

Smoking
High blood pressure
Low HDL cholesterol
Family history of early heart disease
Age older than 45 if you're a man, or older than 55 if you're a woman

Copy and pasted from Mayo Clinic site.  

[FLBrat]

Cholesterol levels are measured in milligrams (mg) of cholesterol per deciliter (dL) of blood. To interpret your test results, use these general guidelines.

Total cholesterol
Below 200 mg/dL Desirable
200-239 mg/dL Borderline high
240 mg/dL and above High



LDL cholesterol
Below 70 mg/dL Optimal for people at very high risk of heart disease
Below 100 mg/dL Optimal for people at risk of heart disease
100-129 mg/dL Near optimal
130-159 mg/dL Borderline high
160-189 mg/dL High
190 mg/dL and above Very high



HDL cholesterol
Below 40 mg/dL Poor
40-59 mg/dL Better
60 mg/dL and above Best



Triglycerides
Below 150 mg/dL Desirable
150-199 mg/dL Borderline high
200-499 mg/dL High
500 or above Very high

LDL targets differ
Because LDL cholesterol is closely associated with heart disease, it's the main focus of cholesterol-lowering treatment. But it's not as simple as the chart may appear. Your target LDL number can vary, depending on your underlying risk of heart disease.

Most people should aim for an LDL level below 130 mg/dL. If you have other risk factors for heart disease, your target LDL may be below 100 mg/dL. If you're at very high risk of heart disease, you may need to aim for an LDL level below 70 mg/dL.

So who's considered very high risk? You might be if you've had a heart attack or if you have diabetes. In addition, two or more of the following risk factors might also place you in the very high risk group:

Smoking
High blood pressure
Low HDL cholesterol
Family history of early heart disease
Age older than 45 if you're a man, or older than 55 if you're a woman

Copy and pasted from Mayo Clinic site.  

[Barbarella]

I would not worry since your HDL is so high, with an HDL like yours its hard for the total cholesterol to stay below 200.

[babsie105]

I would concentrate on that rather high LDL number if I were you.  All the others look fine.

[DM1002]

Diane
I understand the numbers, however i'm still not sure my doctor wants to put me on drugs I'm not sure If i want that right now I'm 53 yrs old these are my score.
  total chol 248mg/dl
  hdl-chol   62 mg/dl
  trig    130 mg/dl
  ldl-chol  150 mg/dl
  chol/ratio   4

Should i do the drugs in this range group. Thanks Diane                      

[NTB]

you could plunge yourself into lifestyle changes (diet and exercise), and see how that works.

most people won't do that, though

It looks like your LDL is your worst number. Some would say that LDL is not relevant, it's the percentage of small, dense LDL that matters. Some would say that ApoB matters more, or that CRP (inflammation) is more important.

Target levels are being revised downward lately.

Roughly half of those who get heart attacks have normal cholesterol values. So a lot is not known yet.

[vh2599]

The following are my Cholesterol numbers, it does not fit with the so called " LDL calculation" formulas. can anyone tell me why:

Cholesterol: 237
HDL: 68
Triglyceride: 69
LDL: 122
  
using the formula  then my LDL should be: 237-68-(69 x 20%) =155.2  yet the lab result shows only 122 ; could this 122 be a "measured" data as mentioned earlier post ;
nevertheless, wht such a huge parity ?

Victor

[vh2599]

To add more confusion to my earlier post; the following is a Q&A on the "VAP" webste; according to what it says if my LDL were calculated then it shoud be "falsely low" . However, my calculate number is 155.2 which is much higher than my reports's "122", not "falsely low" !!!!    contradictions ! contradictions !!                         Victor


Q: Why is a direct measurement of LDL important?

A: The NCEP ATP III recommends that LDL be directly measured as a new feature of the guidelines. LDL is not directly measured in today’s routine lipid panels. Rather, it is calculated using the Friedewald equation: [LDL] = [total cholesterol] – [HDL] – [triglycerides/5]. Thus, calculated LDL is falsely low in patients with elevated triglycerides, and it does not correlate well in patients with diabetes, coronary disease, or other atherosclerotic diseases.