Comprehensive Risk Assessment

Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) remains the leading cause of death in the United States and worldwide. The risk of developing ASCVD and dying from this disease is related to the burden of risk factors. However, ASCVD is remarkably preventable through healthy lifestyle behaviors and drug therapies if indicated. This chapter describes guideline-recommended ASCVD risk assessment, the benefits and limitations of quantitative risk scoring approaches, the importance of identifying and assessing risk-enhancing factors, and how to effectively communicate risk information to patients. A focused cardiovascular history and physical examination, as well as selected screening and diagnostic testing, will be discussed as methods to inform ASCVD risk.