When PREVENT-Age calculates your cardiovascular risk age, it needs something to compare your result with.
Researchers therefore defined an optimal cardiovascular risk profile.
In simple terms, this describes a person who:
- has a systolic blood pressure of 110 mmHg
- has non-HDL cholesterol of 120 mg/dL (about 3.1 mmol/L)
- has good kidney function, with an eGFR of 90 mL/min/1.73 m²
- does not smoke
- does not have diabetes
The reference profile also assumes that the person is not taking medication for high blood pressure or cholesterol.
Why is this useful?
PREVENT-Age compares your cardiovascular risk with the risk of someone who has this favorable profile.
If your PREVENT-Age is higher than your actual age, it means that your current cardiovascular risk is higher than it would be for someone your age with this optimal profile.
These numbers are used as a reference for the calculation. They are not treatment targets that everyone should try to reach.
