High Cholesterol Tools and Training for Professionals

Health professionals can access a variety of tools, resources, and training materials to develop and support programs that focus on preventing and managing high cholesterol.

Fact Sheets

• Aortic Aneurysm
• Heart Disease
• Peripheral Arterial Disease
• Stroke

Guidelines and Recommendations

• 2013 American Heart Association (AHA)/American College of Cardiology (ACC) Guideline on Lifestyle Management to Reduce Cardiovascular Riskexternal icon
  Provides evidence-based guidelines from the AHA/ACC Task Force.
• Managing Blood Cholesterol in Adultsexternal icon
  Provides evidence-based guidelines from the cholesterol expert panel of the National Heart, Blood, and Lung Institute for treating high cholesterol.
• Managing Overweight and Obesity in Adults: Systematic Evidence Review from the Obesity Expert Panelexternal icon
  Provides evidence-based guidelines from the obesity expert panel of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
• Dietary Guidelines for Americansexternal icon
  Provides authoritative advice about good dietary habits that can promote health and reduce the risk of disease. Published jointly every 5 years by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
• U.S. Preventive Services Task Forceexternal icon
  Provides links to recommendations and reports from an independent panel of experts in primary care and prevention who systematically review the effectiveness of clinical preventive services.
• Guide to Community Preventive Servicesexternal icon
  Summarizes what is known about the effectiveness, economic efficiency, and feasibility of interventions to promote community health and prevent disease from the Community Preventive Services Task Force.

Tools and Training

• Cholesterol Management Protocolsexternal icon
  This Web resource from CDC’s Million Hearts® initiative features evidence-based protocols, a flow diagram of the ACC/AHA guidelines to create your own cholesterol management protocol, and a downloadable ASCVD Risk Estimator. The Risk Estimator calculates patients’ estimated 10-year and lifetime risk for ASCVD (atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease).
• The Roadmap: A Systematic Approach to State Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Programs
  A Web-based resource from CDC for training and information to help build the competencies needed by state Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (HDSP) Program coordinators. It provides suggested steps for carrying out requirements of the HDSP Program as well as easy online access to training, tools, and other resources needed for successful program development and implementation. The roadmap offers information on four key areas of programmatic activities for developing and implementing a heart disease and stroke prevention program, including what to do and how to do it.
• Community Health Worker’s Training Resource
  A comprehensive training manual from CDC to improve skills and competencies of community health workers. Includes a chapter on high cholesterol with information, activities, tip sheets, and resources on ways to reduce cholesterol.

Journal Articles

Find additional information about cholesterol in peer-reviewed journal articles authored by CDC researchers.

• Bardenheier BH, Cogswell ME, Gregg EW, Williams DE, Zhang Z, Geiss LS. Does knowing one’s elevated glycemic status make a difference in macronutrient intake?external iconDiabetes Care. 2014;37(12):3143–49. doi: 10.2337/dc14-1342.
• Chatterji P, Joo H, Lahiri K. Examining the education gradient in chronic illness.external iconEduc Econ. 2014;23(6):735–50.
• Dai S, Yang Q, Yuan K, Loustalot F, Fang J, Daniels SR, Hong Y. Non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol: distribution and prevalence of high serum levels in children and adolescents: United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, 2005–2010.external iconJ Pediatrics. 2014;164(2):247–53.