Lp(a): The
Hidden Risk

Central Florida Heart Care

Heart Screening · Orlando, FL

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"You can have perfectly normal cholesterol and still be on a collision course with a heart attack — because there's one number almost no doctor checks."
Lp(a) is a genetic cholesterol particle not included in routine cholesterol panels. It can raise your risk for heart disease and aortic valve disease — completely independently of your LDL. It runs in families. And the vast majority of people at risk have never been tested.
74%
Don't know their Lp(a) level
16%
Have levels above 125 nmol/L
1×
Most people only need it tested once
100%
Genetically determined at birth
Widely Accepted Belief

"If my cholesterol panel looks fine, my heart risk is managed." This assumption drives most routine preventive care — and it leaves a critical blind spot for millions of people.

Counterintuitive Truth

Lp(a) is separate from LDL, rarely included in standard panels, and almost entirely set by your genes. Lifestyle changes alone won't lower it. Knowing your number can change your entire prevention strategy.

Why It Runs in Families

Because Lp(a) is inherited, a single elevated result means close relatives — parents, siblings, children — may be at risk too and have never been told.

What You Can Do

A simple blood test (CPT 83695) can identify it. If elevated, your clinician can build a more personalized prevention plan targeting the risk factors you can control: LDL, blood pressure, lifestyle, and inflammation.

74%
of people do not know their personal Lp(a) level — making it one of the most underdiagnosed cardiovascular risk factors in existence.
54%

Do not know if their personal LDL-C is below 100 mg/dL — meaning most people are unaware of even their standard cholesterol status.

16%

Have Lp(a) levels above 125 nmol/L — a threshold many clinicians consider high risk — most of them undiagnosed.

46%

Have LDL-C levels above 100 mg/dL, suggesting significant residual cardiovascular risk even among those who've had standard testing.

Content Angle — Survey Hook

We surveyed patients on their lipid awareness. The results were alarming:

— 74% didn't know their Lp(a).
— 54% didn't know if their LDL was below 100.
— 46% had LDL levels above the recommended threshold.

We don't have a knowledge problem. We have a testing problem. And it's costing lives.

01
New Patient — First Visit
"We run Lp(a) on everyone here — because it's the number most routine panels miss, and it's often the most important one for people with a family history of heart disease."
02
Patient with Family History
"Heart disease running in your family might not be about cholesterol at all. Lp(a) is inherited — it's the most common genetic cardiovascular risk factor most people have never heard of."
03
Social Media Bio / Profile
"Heart screening that goes beyond the standard panel — including Lp(a), the inherited risk factor 74% of patients have never had measured."
04
Referring Physician Conversation
"We specialize in the cardiovascular risk factors that don't appear on standard lipid panels — particularly Lp(a), which affects a significant portion of patients with unexplained early heart disease."
05
Shareable / Viral Hook
"Normal cholesterol doesn't mean no risk. There's a number your panel probably didn't include — and it's genetic."
06
Patient — Post-Result Conversation
"Lp(a) won't change much over time, so this is likely a one-time test. But knowing your number lets us build a prevention plan that's actually calibrated to your real risk."
1
Tension — The False Reassurance
"Your routine cholesterol came back normal. Your doctor wasn't worried. You weren't worried. But your panel didn't test for everything. There's a particle that can raise your risk for heart attack and stroke — completely independently of your LDL — that most routine tests simply don't include."
2
Intrigue — The Inherited Mystery
"Did heart disease run in your family — even in people who 'took care of themselves'? That pattern might not be bad luck. There's a genetic risk factor that passes from parent to child, can't be dieted away, and 74% of people have never been told they have."
3
Reveal — Name It
"It's called Lp(a) — Lipoprotein(a). Think of it as a type of LDL with an extra protein attached that makes it more likely to stick to artery walls. It's set by your genetics. It doesn't show up on a standard panel. And 16% of people have levels above the high-risk threshold — most of them completely unaware."
4
Credibility — The Practice Frame
"At Central Florida Heart Care, we include Lp(a) in our screening because standard panels leave too much hidden. If you have an elevated level, we build a more personalized prevention plan — and we recommend that your close relatives get tested too."
5
Call to Action — The One Question
Ask your doctor: "Have I ever had my Lp(a) checked?" If the answer is no, your heart screening isn't complete. It's a single blood test. It only needs to be done once. And it could change what your prevention plan looks like for the rest of your life.

Educational content only — not medical advice · centralfloridaheartcare.com/lipoproteina

Central Florida Heart Care