At Valley, we know that good heart health starts with prevention. While our heart care team offers the most advanced heart treatments, they can also help you prevent future heart problems. And that starts with comprehensive heart screening.
Valley offers a free heart screening for men and women starting at age 20. This noninvasive risk assessment can help determine your risks for developing heart disease.
Our team will then help you understand your results and guide you on ways to reduce your risks.
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What to Expect with Your Heart Risk Assessment
You’ll work with our Valley board-certified nurse practitioners who specialize in heart health.
They will take an extensive health history, perform a physical exam focused on your heart health and review lab work. They’ll then provide you with a comprehensive risk assessment.
Lab Work
Your care team will evaluate your blood work as part of your assessment. Some of the tests may include:
- Lipid panel to measure your cholesterol and triglycerides
- Comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP) to assess your kidney and liver function, electrolytes, fluid balance and more
- Vitamin D test to measure the level of vitamin D
- A1C to measure your blood sugar levels
If needed, your provider can give you a prescription for lab work.
Evaluation and Assessment
Along with the results of your lab work, your nurse practitioner will:
- Gather information about your personal and family health history
- Perform a physical exam focused on your cardiovascular system
- Measure your height, weight, waist size and body mass index (BMI)
- Measure your heart rate by checking your pulse
- Explain the results of your blood work
You and your provider will also explore traditional risk factors for heart disease that may affect you, including:
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- High cholesterol
- History of tobacco use
- Pregnancy-related conditions (e.g., preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, preterm labor)
- Reproductive health (e.g., menopause, polycystic ovarian syndrome)
- Inflammatory diseases
- Autoimmune diseases
- Lifestyle and stress
Your Risk Score
After your comprehensive evaluation and assessment, your nurse practitioner will calculate:
- Your estimated risk score
- Your 10-year and lifetime risk estimates for a heart attack or stroke
Your Risk-Reduction Plan
Once you have your risk estimate, you and your provider will discuss next steps.
This could include:
- Education and guidance about how to reduce your risks based on your screening results
- Referrals cardiologists or other specialists, if needed
We’ll start by discussing your specific goals, lifestyle and personal preferences. From there, your plan may include:
Why Choose Valley for Heart Screening?
- Making it easy to get screened: We know it’s not always easy to prioritize preventive health appointments. We make it as convenient as possible by offering both in-person and virtual options for heart screening.
- Free heart screening: At Valley, we know that the earlier you detect heart disease, the more treatable it is. Additionally, we know that there are a number of effective treatments to lower your risk for developing heart disease. That’s why we’ve made this heart screening free for people starting at age 20.
- Advanced cardiac imaging: Along with our heart screening tests, Valley’s cardiac imaging program provides advanced diagnostic tests that detect and stage heart disease. Valley offers state-of-the-art imaging, along with coronary calcium evaluation to assess your heart attack risk. This innovative test helps determine if you should start preventive treatment, even if you have no symptoms.
- Collaborative heart care: Valley’s comprehensive cardiology program brings together a team of world-class specialists. Together, they provide the most advanced treatments tailored to your specific heart concerns and preferences.
