Unique Danish study provides surprising new knowledge about the consequences of hereditary high cholesterol

Hereditary high cholesterol (FH) is the most common hereditary disease and, if left untreated, can lead to atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease and, in the worst cases, blood clots.

It is estimated that approximately 30,000 Danes suffer from FH, but 2/3 of them don't know they have it, thus missing out on the treatments that can ensure patients a normal life.

In a new study just published in the European Heart Journal, researchers from Herlev and Gentofte Hospital quantify for the first time how life expectancy and cardiovascular disease in people diagno-sed with FH have developed in Denmark over the past five decades.

And there is both good, surprising and less good news in the study of the unique data, says Professor Børge Nordestgaard, Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Herlev and Gentofte Hospital and Univer-sity of Copenhagen.

- The good news is that people diagnosed with FH are now living as long as the average population. We were surprised to see such a positive development, but it shows that we have the opportunity to help people live longer and better lives. It also emphasizes the importance of us as a society making an effort to detect people with high hereditary cholesterol.

While the US, for example, has only started to create a comprehensive registration in the last five ye-ars, Denmark is the only country in the world to have registers dating back to 1978.

In 1978, the average life expectancy in Denmark for people diagnosed with FH was 50 years, while for the general population it was 72 years. By 2021, these figures had increased to 78 and 79 years respectively.

But even though the gap has narrowed when researchers look at when people with and without FH are diagnosed with cardiovascular disease on average, we are far from there, says Børge Nordest-gaard.

- Even if we only look at those who are diagnosed with FH and therefore have access to treatment, on average they are affected by cardiovascular disease seven years earlier than the rest of the popu-lation, with the associated symptoms. Better detection of patients will mean that treatment can be initiated earlier and prevent FH from leading to cardiovascular disease.

About FH
FH stands for "familial hypercholesterolemia" and is an inherited disease that causes you to have too much of the so-called LDL cholesterol. This is also known as the "bad" cholesterol and is easy to mea-sure. If the number is above five for people over the age of 40, you should be investigated further to see if you have high hereditary cholesterol. For people under 40, the critical threshold is four on LDL cholesterol. The disease is passed down from generation to generation in such a way that siblings and children of a person with FH have a 50 percent risk of also having familial hypercholesterolemia.