World Heart Day!

 

The powerhouse of the body, beating 100,00 times every day, pumping eight pints of blood, through an intertwining network of blood vessels. Delivering oxygen and nutrients to muscles and the vital organs of the body. The centrepiece, what keeps us alive, the heart!

Why put strain on the very thing that keeps us alive? The heart is the most important muscle working constantly, embracing a healthy lifestyle can lower the risk of developing a stroke or heart attack, and can prevent cardiovascular disease. No matter your age young or old, you can begin to take care of your heart. Making healthier choices, watching what you eat, exercising regularly are all good habits to start or continue to look after your precious heart.

 

Randox Laboratories offer a wide selection of Reagents specifically for Lipid testing. Lipid tests are the most important cardiac risk tests. They assess an individual’s risk of a stroke or heart attack and can provide an indication if someone is going to have a cardiac episode, caused by blockages of arteries and blood vessels. Lipid tests screen for abnormalities of cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the blood, allowing for preventative measures to take place to reduce the chances of cardiovascular diseases.

Complete lipid profiles consist of HDL Cholesterol, LDL Cholesterol, Total Cholesterol and Triglycerides. These profiles measure the current cholesterol and triglycerides levels also, measuring potential emerging risk factors of cardiovascular disease.

 

‘Benefits of Randox’s Lipid testing includes;

Enhanced convenience with liquid ready-to-use reagents (Triglycerides kits also come in lyophilised form)

Excellent correlation to reference methods for security of accurate results

Applications for a wide range of clinical chemistry analysers

Wide measuring ranges able to comfortably detect abnormal lipid levels.

Cost effectiveness for even small throughput labs – all lipid assays are stable to expiry when stored at 2-8⁰C (except for Triglyceride kits, stable for 21 days)’

 

Randox provides the “only direct automated sdLDL-C kit on the market, The Randox sdLDL-C test, is a direct method for the quantitative determination of sdLDL-C using automated chemistry analysers, capable of accommodating two-reagent assays. The assay consists of two steps, and is based on the use of well-characterised surfactants and enzymes, that selectively react with certain groups of lipoproteins.

 

Benefits include,

Direct, automated test for convenience and efficiency

Rapid analysis results can be produced in as little as ten minutes, facilitating faster patient diagnosis and treatment plan implementation.

Good correlation to the gold standard ultracentrifugation method

Liquid ready-to-use reagents for convenience and ease of use

Applications available detailing instrument specific settings for a wide range of analysers

Clearance method sdLDL-C controls and calibrator available.

 

One of Randox’s Reagents offered is the Lipoprotein (a) assay known as Lp(a). It is similar to LDL cholesterol but a lot more viscous.

High levels of lipoprotein can clog arteries very easily, leading to the potential of a stroke or cardiovascular disease at any age. Lp(a) is made in the liver containing fat and protein, their main role is to carry lipids around the body. Lp(a) remains relatively stable over a lifespan and is determined predominantly through genetics. Just a single Lp(a) test is believed to be enough to improve accuracy of a cardiovascular risk assessment. Repeat testing can also be initiated if a secondary cause is suspected, or therapeutic measures to lower Lp(a) levels have been investigated.

 

Benefits of the Lp(a) assay;

WHO/IFCC Reference Material

Dedicated Five-Point Calibrator Available

Excellent Correlation

Excellent Precision

Liquid Ready-To-Use

Applications Available

 

References

BHF (2023) How your heart works, British Heart Foundation. Available at: https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/how-a-healthy-heart-works (Accessed: 19 September 2023).

Family Doctor (2023) Keeping Your Heart Healthy, familydoctor.org. Available at: https://familydoctor.org/keeping-heart-healthy/ (Accessed: 19 September 2023).

Heart UK (2023) High lipoprotein(a), What Is High lipoprotein(a)? | Cholesterol Conditions | HEART UK. Available at: https://www.heartuk.org.uk/genetic-conditions/high-lipoproteina (Accessed: 20 September 2023).

Randox (2023b) Lipid: Reagents, Randox Laboratories. Available at: https://www.randox.com/lipid-reagent (Accessed: 19 September 2023).