Cardiovascular Health

Cardiovascular Disease Prevention is a new approach to non–invasive early risk assessment and prevention. This unique comprehensive cardiovascular disease prevention protocol uses an effective tailored therapy program to treat what has been called “The Inflammatory Syndrome.” Many of our most debilitating diseases can be traced to chronic inflammatory conditions. This perpetual inflammation, or low lying chronic Inflammation, and its complications, promotes many diseases, affecting millions of people. It’s the cumulative effect of low-grade inflammation, including the aches and pains we all experience, which grows into chronic debilitating diseases.

For instance, coronary heart disease, the number one killer in the Western world and a disease that afflicts more than a third of people in developed countries is caused by atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis begins as an inflammatory condition resulting in the narrowing of vessels due to the build up of fat deposits within the inside lining of medium to large arteries. These fat deposits results in what is called plaque buildup, which eventually leads to clot (thrombus) formation. First, second and third stage plaque results in 76% of all the fatal heart attacks.

Atherosclerosis can also lead to an acute condition like pulmonary embolism that occurs when a blood clot (thrombus) becomes dislodged from veins elsewhere in the body and moves (embolizes) into the pulmonary arterial circulation. When a large embolus detaches from a vessel and passes through the right heart, it may lodge in the bifurcation of the pulmonary artery where it forms what is known as a saddle embolus, and this is fatal.

Every year 600,000 cases of pulmonary embolism are reported. More than 30,000 of Americans from this group will die and approximately one third of the deaths occur within the first hour. The diagnoses of a pulmonary embolism is missed in about 70% of cases overall. Among patients over 70 years of age, the diagnoses of a pulmonary embolism are missed in about 90% of the patients because there is no typical clinical presentation.

Dr. Howell provides new choices and cutting edge tools to fight plaque buildup by reducing chronic inflammation. He can tailor a therapy program that can detect, reduce, and monitor low-lying chronic inflammation. It begins with a complete comprehensive exam, then a simple blood test to determine your level of chronic inflammation. Dr. Howell can then interpret your unique biochemical inflammatory markers and determine specific supplements and treatment protocols for your cardiovascular disease prevention program.