Familial hypercholesterolemia is a disease that can be detected easily and for which treatment exists. However, in Europe, only Slovenia and the Netherlands have put in place screening for the disease. EurActiv France reports.
Chronic pain and tendon inflammation could be directly linked to high cholesterol, according to a study by the University of Canberra. EurActiv Spain reports.
The study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, found that inflammation caused by the accumulation of cholesterol in the cells of the immune system could be a major factor in tendinitis and chronic pain.
After analysing 1,607 scientific articles on the subject, published between 1973 and 2014, the researchers concluded that people with tendon problems tend to have higher levels of fat (lipids) in their blood.
The high price of two new anti-cholesterol drugs limits the benefits patients may see from them, according to a draft report released by a US nonprofit examining drug cost effectiveness.
The new drugs, Praluent, from French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi and Regeneron, and Repatha, from California-based Amgen, both target the enzyme PCSK9, which, when inhibited, can lead to reduced LDL-cholesterol.
New medicines soon expected to hit the European market will allow patients to lower their levels of bad cholesterol more substantially than is currently possible, opening new avenues for tackling heart diseases.
A new type of cholesterol drug from Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals won a green light from European regulators in February, two months behind a rival product from Amgen.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said its experts had recommended Praluent for patients unable to control their cholesterol despite taking optimal doses of conventional statin pills or those who cannot take statins.
As a silent killer, where symptoms are often invisible before it's too late, high levels of bad cholesterol do not get much attention. But researchers are making the case that the condition, which is known to cause cardiovascular diseases, can also cause brain disorders such as Alzheimer's, and dementia.
Instances of type 2 diabetes have increased rapidly over the past twenty years, mainly in the Western world, due to poor lifestyles. Policymakers have given it a lot of attention in recent years, as it is a financial burden for public health systems.
Those who suffer from diabetes can also put others at risk, for example, while driving, as the condition has an impact on eyesight.
wo MEPs have questioned the European Commission over the lack of information available about bad cholesterol, which now affects 54% of Europeans. EurActiv France reports.
Increasing numbers of European citizens are affected by high levels of cholesterol, a dangerous condition that is often overlooked in healthcare programmes.
Heart diseases related to bad cholesterol are too often associated with unhealthy lifestyle choices like drinking, smoking and lack of exercise. But this fails to take account of the genetically inherited form of the condition, health experts warn, calling on the European Union to take more leadership to help diagnose the disease at an early age.
Out of 100,000 heart disease incidents in France, 20,000 affect under 45-year-olds. Yet society does not realise the risk of hypercholesterolemia in younger people. EurActiv France reports.
Young people are not usually associated with heart diseases, but their dietary habits are putting them more and more at risk of high cholesterol.
Hypercholesterolemia, or the excess of cholesterol in the bloodstream, increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, especially when combined with early age smoking.
