Lipids, Cholesterol, and Lipoproteins: Understanding CVD Risk

This lecture offers the following credit types: CME, P.A.C.E.®, Florida
 

Lipids and lipoproteins are a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). After a brief overview of CVD, this session will discuss the role of triglycerides and low- and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in the context of CVD. Additionally, an overview of lipid testing recommendations and laboratory methodologies for measurement of lipids and lipoproteins will be provided.

Originally published on April 2, 2026

Lecture Presenter

Heather A. Nelson, PhD, DABCC

Heather A. Nelson, PhD, DABCC

Assistant Professor (Clinical)
Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah
Medical Director, Clinical Chemistry and Mass Spectrometry
ARUP Laboratories

Dr. Heather Nelson is a medical director of Clinical Chemistry and Mass Spectrometry at ARUP Laboratories, and an assistant professor (clinical) at the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah. She received her doctorate degree in cell and developmental biology from SUNY Upstate Medical University. She then completed fellowships in diabetes, endocrinology, and metabolism at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and in clinical chemistry from the University of Utah School of Medicine. Dr. Nelson is a diplomate of the American Board of Clinical Chemistry and a member of the Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM). She received the 2022 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting—First Place Student Oral Presentation Award, 2022 AACC SYCL Travel grant, 2021 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting—Student Research Poster Award: Honorable mention, the 2021 ACLPS Paul E. Strandjord Young Investigator Award, and the Division and Academy abstract awards at the 2024 ADLM Annual Scientific Meeting for her research highlighting a need for pediatric reference ranges in advanced lipoprotein testing. Her research interests include endocrinology, diabetes, lipids, and laboratory best practices.

Objectives

After this presentation, participants will be able to:

  • Explain the roles of lipids, cholesterol, and lipoproteins in atherosclerosis and CVD development
  • List and describe the three major pathways of lipoprotein metabolism
  • Discuss methods for measurement of routine lipid tests

Sponsored by:

Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah, Department of Pathology,
and ARUP Laboratories