Risk Factors for Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the number one killer of both men and women in the United States (U.S.) and throughout the world, accounting for one-third of all deaths. In order to curb CVD, it is important that nurses and other health-care providers partner with patients to prevent or reduce CVD risk factors. Risk factors are biological characteristics or exposures to certain environmental conditions that increase a person’s statistical risk of developing atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). Some risk factors cannot be modified, such as age, sex, family history of premature ASCVD, and race and ethnicity. Genetic variants have also been linked to ASCVD as well as environmental factors that contribute to epigenetic modifications of DNA. Major risk factors that can be managed are dyslipidemia, hypertension, diabetes metabolic syndrome (MetS), and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Recently appreciated risk factors in women are adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs), such as preeclampsia and gestational hypertension, which can increase a woman’s risk of developing CVD later in life. Other risk factors are behavioral or pertain to lifestyle, such as tobacco use, physical inactivity, poor nutritional practices, inadequate sleep, and stress. These will be discussed in other chapters.