Primary Care, the First Line of Defense Against Heart Disease

Your heart is at the core of your well-being, and ensuring heart health is critical for a long and active life. While it’s common to associate heart health with cardiologists, primary care providers play an important role in heart health by being your first line of defense, determining your risk for heart disease and guiding you in ways to prevent a future heart attack.

“Scheduling an annual exam with a primary care provider is a great place to start if you have a specific health concern or just need reassurance that you’re on the right track,” says Cecilia Mathis, MD, a physician at Anderson County Hospital’s Family Care Center in Garnett, Kansas. 

A primary care provider can order a full blood workup, ask questions about symptoms or other concerns you may have, guide an evaluation to determine your level of risk for heart disease and other chronic conditions, suggest lifestyle changes and prescribe medications, and make referrals for further testing or to a specialist if needed.

“When I talk to my patients about heart disease, the first thing to consider is a patient's Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD) risk score,” says Dr. Mathis. “ASCVD risk is a percentage that estimates the chance of having a heart attack or stroke within 10 years.”

Calculating a patient's ASCVD risk takes into account a variety of indicators, including the patient’s age, race, history of diabetes, whether they are female or male, smoking status, cholesterol levels, systolic blood pressure, and if the patient is already undergoing treatment for high blood pressure.

“If a patient has 1 or more cardiovascular disease risk factors and their 10-year ASCVD risk score is greater than 7.5%, we recommend starting a statin medication to lower overall risk. For patients with an intermediate ASCVD risk score (5-7.5%) or those who are reluctant to initiate or continue a statin therapy, I may recommend a CardioScan to help evaluate the risk more precisely.”

CardioScan, also known as Coronary Artery Calcium Scan, is a special type of CT scan that detects calcified plaque in the coronary arteries. Plaque buildup narrows the arteries and reduces blood flow to the heart muscle, which can lead to heart failure or a heart attack.

“If patients have a score of 0 on their CardioScan, then it can be reasonable to hold off on starting any medication,” said Dr. Mathis. “If they have a score less than 100 indicating a small amount of plaque buildup present, we’ll need to discuss starting a statin therapy to help prevent additional buildup. Higher scores could mean a referral to a cardiologist for further evaluation.”

“My main goal is to help you stay healthy,” said Dr. Mathis, “so no matter your age or level or risk for stroke and heart disease, it’s important to always consider simple things you can do now to help prevent serious consequences later.” 

Making changes that keep your arteries healthier will help lower your risk for both heart attack and stroke. If you have heart disease, you may need to work on a few aspects of your lifestyle. But remember that the things that are good for your arteries, heart, and brain are also good for the rest of your body. Factors you may need to work on include:

Diet. Consider reducing fat, cholesterol, and sodium (salt) intake, eating more fresh vegetables and fruits, eating more lean proteins and less red meat, and limiting sweets and processed foods.

Physical activity. Increase your physical activity. Your provider may recommend moderate to vigorous aerobic activity several times a week. The amount will depend on your health and ability.

Weight management. If you are overweight or obese, your provider can work with you to lose weight and lower your BMI (body mass index) to a normal or near-normal level. 

Smoking. If you smoke, break the smoking habit. Your provider can offer resources to help.

Stress. Your provider can offer ways to help you deal with stress in your home and work life. 

Your primary care provider knows your health and family history better than anyone and can be a great partner in helping you maintain a healthy heart, but it’s up to you to take the first step.

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cecilia Mathis or another primary care provider at the Family Care Center in Garnett, call 785-448-2674.

Read A Simple Test Can Help Determine Your Risk for Heart Attack to learn more about CardioScan testing available at Anderson County Hospital in Garnett and Allen County Regional Hospital in Iola, Kansas.