A coronary risk profile is a battery of blood tests to measure your cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The profile can help determine your risk for heart disease.

Blood is typically drawn from a vein, usually from the inside of the elbow or the back of the hand. The site is cleaned with germ-killing medicine (antiseptic). The health care provider wraps an elastic band around the upper arm to apply pressure to the area and make the vein swell with blood.

Next, the health care provider gently inserts a needle into the vein. The blood collects into an airtight vial or tube attached to the needle. The elastic band is removed from your arm.

Once the blood has been collected, the needle is removed, and the puncture site is covered to stop any bleeding.

In infants or young children, a sharp tool called a lancet may be used to puncture the skin and make it bleed. The blood collects into a small glass tube called a pipette, or onto a slide or test strip. A bandage may be placed over the area if there is any bleeding.

The blood is sent to a laboratory, where the following are measured:

• Low density lipoprotein (LDL or "bad" cholesterol)
• High density lipoprotein (HDL or "good" cholesterol
• Total cholesterol
• Triglycerides
• Very low density lipoprotein (VLDL cholesterol)

Additional blood tests, such as C-reactive protein (CRP), may be added to the profile in some laboratories.

You should not eat or drink anything except water for 9-12 hours before having your blood drawn.

When the needle is inserted to draw blood, some people feel moderate pain, while others feel only a prick or stinging sensation. Afterward, there may be some throbbing.

The coronary risk profile is most often done:

• As a screening examination to determine your general health
• To monitor you if you have a history of heart problems or other disorders related to atherosclerosis
• To determine how well diet and medications are controlling your high cholesterol

• LDL: 60 - 130 mg/dL
• HDL: greater than 40 mg/dL
• Total cholesterol: less than 200 mg/dL
• Triglycerides: 10 - 150 mg/dL
• VLDL: 2 - 38 mg/dL

Note: mg/dL = milligrams per deciliter

The ideal values for patients with known coronary artery disease are different from those for patients without coronary disease. High values of HDL (60 or higher) are protective and are therefore desirable.

Note: Normal value ranges may vary slightly among different laboratories. Talk to your doctor about the meaning of your specific test results.

Abnormal values may be a sign that you are at increased risk for atherosclerosis and related disorders, including heart disease.

There is very little risk involved with having your blood taken. Veins and arteries vary in size from one patient to another and from one side of the body to the other. Taking blood from some people may be more difficult than from others.

Other risks associated with having blood drawn are slight but may include:

• Excessive bleeding
• Fainting or feeling light-headed
• Hematoma (blood accumulating under the skin)
• Infection (a slight risk any time the skin is broken)

Conditions under which the test may be performed:

• Acute MI
• Atheroembolic renal disease
• Familial hyperlipidemia
• Familial hypertriglyceridemia
• Familial hypercholesterolemia
• Hyperlipidemia
• Ischemic cardiomyopathy
• Stroke secondary to atherosclerosis
• Transient ischemic attack (TIA)

Gaziano M, Manson JE, Ridker PM. Primary and secondary prevention of coronary heart disease. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Zipes DP, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:chap 45.