USPSTF: Evidence Lacking for Screening for Lipid Disorders in Patients Aged 20 and Younger
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, July 18, 2023 -- The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes that the current evidence is insufficient for assessing the balance of benefits and harms of screening for lipid disorders in children and adolescents aged 20 years or younger. These findings form the basis of a final recommendation statement published in the July 18 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Janelle M. Guirguis-Blake, M.D., from the Kaiser Permanente Evidence-based Practice Center in Portland, Oregon, and colleagues reviewed the benefits and harms of screening and treatment of pediatric dyslipidemia due to familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) and multifactorial dyslipidemia. Data were included from 43 studies with 491,516 participants. The researchers found that no randomized clinical trials (RCTs) directly addressed the effectiveness and harms of screening. The prevalence of phenotypically defined FH was 0.2 to 0.4 percent in three U.S. studies, and the prevalence of elevated total cholesterol and of any lipid abnormality was 7.1 to 9.4 percent and 19.2 percent, respectively. Statins were associated with an 81- to 82-mg/dL greater mean reduction in levels of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol compared with placebo at two years based on 10 RCTs. Statin treatment for FH starting in childhood or adolescence reduced long-term cardiovascular disease risk in observational studies.
Based on these findings, the USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient for assessing the balance of benefits and harms of lipid disorder screening among asymptomatic children and adolescents aged 20 years or younger (I statement).
"We don't have enough evidence to tell us whether or not screening all children and adolescents for high cholesterol is beneficial," a task force member said in a statement.
Final Recommendation Statement
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted July 2023
Read this next
Mortality in Rheumatic Heart Disease Is High
FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- Mortality related to rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is high and is correlated with the severity of valve disease, according to a study published online June...
Higher County-Level Prostate Cancer Screening Tied to Better Outcomes
FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- Higher county-level prevalence of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening is associated with lower odds of advanced disease, all-cause mortality, and...
Metabolic Impact on Offspring Similar for Frozen, Fresh Embryo Transfer
FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- For glucose and lipid profiles during early childhood, the impact of frozen embryo transfer (FET) is comparable to that of fresh embryo transfer, according...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.