CHD Risk Equivalent

Definition: A CHD risk equivalent, otherwise known as a coronary heart disease equivalent, is a condition that places you at high risk for experiencing a cardiac event, such as a heart attack. In fact, having one or more of these conditions may place you at the same risk of having a cardiac event as someone who has already experienced one.

The following conditions are considered CHD risk equivalents:

• abdominal aortic aneurysm
• diabetes
• peripheral vascular disease
• carotid artery disease
• a 10-year risk of having heart disease greater than 20% according to the Framingham Cardiac Risk Calculator

While there are only a few CHD risk equivalents, these should be carefully monitored and controlled. Cholesterol levels are also monitored -- especially since high LDL cholesterol levels could occur in many of these conditions and can contribute to the formation of atherosclerosis.