This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Genetics, lipoprotein biology, emerging therapeutics, unique population management prominent themes at NLA Scientific Sessions
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
In advance of the upcoming National Lipid Association Scientific Sessions, co-chair James A. Underberg, MD, MS, FNLA, discusses prominent themes of the meeting including genetics, lipoprotein biology, emerging lipid therapeutics and management of unique populations.
The annual Scientific Sessions will be held May 19 to 22 in New Orleans.
James A. Underberg
Broad range of topics
In an exclusive interview, Underberg, who is co-chair of the sessions along with Harold E. Bays, MD, FNLA, of the Louisville Metabolic and Atherosclerosis Research Center, Kentucky, and Carl E. Orringer, MD, FNLA, of the University of Miami School of Medicine, Florida, told Cardiology Today “one of the overarching themes [of the sessions] is ... the role that genetics play in the understanding of risk and lipid disorders, and how we might utilize genetics in the care of patients and in future therapies for patients with lipid disorders.”
Underberg is clinical assistant professor of medicine at the NYU School of Medicine and the NYU Center for Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease; director of Bellevue Hospital Lipid Clinic, New York; and diplomate of the American Board of Clinical Lipidology.
Harold E. Bays
During the first session of the meeting on Thursday, May 19, Nathaniel O. Stitziel, MD, PhD, Muredach P. Reilly, MBBCH, and Marina Cuchel, MD, PhD, will discuss the impact of genetics in lipidology and will provide attendees “an overview of the basics and the understanding they require to adjust to a new and emerging field,” Underberg said.
Carl E. Orringer
Other presentations will emphasize “the science of cholesterol and cholesterol management,” including familial hypercholesterolemia, lipoprotein(a) and apolipoprotein C-III, he said in an interview with Cardiology Today. Anne Tybjaerg-Hansen, MD, DMSc, will give a keynote address on Apo C-III, which Underberg said is “an emerging risk factor and target for therapy development.” Christie M. Ballantyne, MD, FNLA, Sergio Fazio, MD, PhD, FNLA, and Børge Nordestgaard, MD, DMSc, will discuss lipoprotein(a) as a cause of CVD, the pathophysiology of lipoprotein(a) and its role as a target for therapy. During a session dedicated to familial hypercholesterolemia, Jacques Genest, MD, Joshua W. Knowles, MD, PhD, FNLA, and Julie St-Pierre, MD, PhD, will highlight the current state and future of familial hypercholesterolemia management and treatment as well as the pros and cons of genetic testing in patients with familial hypercholesterolemia.
Christie M. Ballantyne
The final day of the meeting will feature talks on the management of obesity; women’s health topics such as pregnancy, polycystic ovarian syndrome and menopause; and the CV and lipid risks pertaining to patients with HIV/AIDS.
Other presenters include Stanley Hazen, MD, PhD, on the impact of gut microbia on lipids and CVD risk; Virgil Brown, MD, FNLA, on endothelial lipase; David E. Cohen, MD, PhD, on the pathogenesis and management of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; Erik S.G. Stroes, MD, PhD, on the present and future role of PCSK9 inhibitors; and John P. Higgins, MD, MBA, MPhil, on smartphone applications for patients’ health and fitness.
Sergio Fazio
New on the agenda this year, on Saturday, May 21, there will be breakout tracks on clinical science and basic science. “Attendees can choose from [sessions on] clinical or basic science, or they can go back and forth,” Underberg said.
New research continues to be a focus of the meeting. The 2016 meeting will feature the first-ever late-breaking clinical trials session. The poster session also continues to grow, Underberg noted.
Opportunity for interaction
The target audience for the sessions is not only lipidologists, but “anyone involved in the treatment, care and management of patients with lipid or lipoprotein disorders or [those who] are interested in CV risk reduction and prevention of CVD,” Underberg said. These include cardiologists, endocrinologists, gynecologists, internal and family medicine physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, pharmacists, registered dietitians, physicians’ assistants and exercise physiologists.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for people to interact with their peers and friends and with national and international experts,” he said. – by Erik Swain, with additional reporting by Katie Kalvaitis
For more information:
To view the full NLA Scientific Sessions agenda, visit www.lipid.org/sessions.
Disclosure: Underberg is co-chair of the NLA 2016 Scientific Sessions.