Inflammation and cholesterol at the crossroads of vascular risk

Although the role of inflammation in atherosclerosis is established, whether this relationship remains important after lowering low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is still unclear. Recently in The Lancet, Ridker et al. demonstrated that residual inflammatory risk was a stronger predictor of fatal and non-fatal events compared to residual cholesterol risk, supporting the concept of inflammation testing to guide vascular risk reduction. Although the role of inflammation in atherosclerosis is established, whether this relationship remains important after lowering low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is still unclear. Recently in The Lancet, Ridker et al. demonstrated that residual inflammatory risk was a stronger predictor of fatal and non-fatal events compared to residual cholesterol risk, supporting the concept of inflammation testing to guide vascular risk reduction.