ASCVD Risk Calculator

ASCVD stands for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. It is a condition where plaque builds up inside your arteries. This can block blood flow and lead to a heart attack or stroke.

A score below 5% is considered low risk. This means you have less than a 5 in 100 chance of having a heart attack or stroke in the next 10 years. The lower your score, the better.

The Pooled Cohort Equations (PCE) were created in 2013 and use cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, age, sex, and race. The PREVENT™ model came out in 2023 and adds BMI, kidney function, and heart failure risk. PREVENT does not use race and also gives a 30-year risk estimate.

If your doctor follows the 2013 ACC/AHA guidelines, use PCE. If your doctor uses the newer 2023 AHA guidelines or you want to include kidney function and BMI, use PREVENT. You can run both and compare. Ask your doctor which is best for you.

The 2013 PCE model was built using separate equations for White and African American patients. The 2023 PREVENT model was designed to work without race as an input. The AHA chose this approach because race is a social category, not a biological one, and the newer model uses clinical measures like BMI and eGFR instead.

No. Both the PCE and PREVENT models are made for people who have not been diagnosed with cardiovascular disease. If you already have heart disease, your doctor will use different tools to manage your care.

For the PCE, 10-year risk works for ages 40 to 79, and lifetime risk works for ages 20 to 59. For PREVENT, 10-year risk works for ages 30 to 79, and 30-year risk works for ages 30 to 59.

eGFR stands for estimated glomerular filtration rate. It measures how well your kidneys filter waste from your blood. Poor kidney function raises cardiovascular risk, so the PREVENT model includes it for a more accurate estimate. A normal eGFR is 60 or above.

Click the mg/dL or mmol/L button below the cholesterol input field. The calculator will automatically convert your entered value to the new unit.

The therapy scenarios show how your 10-year risk might change if you start treatments like statin therapy, blood pressure medication, aspirin, or quit smoking. You can check or uncheck each option to see how different combinations could lower your risk.

The therapy projections use average relative risk reductions from large clinical trials. They give a rough estimate, not an exact prediction. Your actual benefit depends on the specific drug, dose, and your overall health. Talk to your doctor for a personalized plan.

The bar shows four zones. Green is low risk (below 5%). Yellow is borderline (5% to 7.4%). Orange is intermediate (7.5% to 19.9%). Red is high risk (20% or more). Your score is marked with an arrow, and the optimal score is shown with a diamond.

These are extra conditions that may push your true risk higher than the calculator shows. Examples include a family history of early heart disease, high Lp(a), chronic kidney disease, and inflammatory conditions like rheumatoid arthritis. Your doctor may use these to decide if you need treatment even if your score is borderline.

10-year risk estimates your chance of a heart attack or stroke in the next 10 years. Lifetime risk (PCE) or 30-year risk (PREVENT) looks further ahead. A young person may have a low 10-year risk but a high lifetime risk if they have untreated risk factors.

Only the PREVENT mode can estimate heart failure risk. The PCE mode only estimates the risk of heart attack and stroke. In PREVENT mode, you can check the Heart Failure box under outcomes to see this result.

Total CVD combines the risk of ASCVD (heart attack and stroke) and heart failure into one number. It gives you a broader picture of overall cardiovascular risk.

Talk to your doctor. A high risk score (20% or more) usually means your doctor will recommend high-intensity statin therapy and strong lifestyle changes like improving your diet, exercising more, quitting smoking, and controlling blood pressure and blood sugar.

Yes. Quitting smoking is one of the most effective ways to lower cardiovascular risk. The calculator even lets former smokers enter how long ago they quit. The longer you have been smoke-free, the lower your risk drops.

You can optionally add UACR (a measure of protein in your urine), HbA1c (average blood sugar over 2 to 3 months), and ZIP code (used to estimate social deprivation). These may improve the accuracy of your risk estimate but are not required.

Yes. The calculator is designed to work on phones, tablets, and computers. All buttons, fields, and charts adjust to fit your screen size.

No. This tool is for educational purposes only. It gives an estimate based on population-level data. Your doctor can consider your full medical history, family history, and other tests to give you personalized advice. Always share your results with your healthcare provider.

The step-by-step section shows the exact math the calculator uses. It walks through how your inputs are transformed, which coefficients are applied, and how the final risk percentage is computed. This is useful for medical students, clinicians, or anyone who wants to verify the result.

Men and women have different baseline rates of heart disease. The PCE and PREVENT models use separate sets of coefficients for each sex to produce more accurate risk estimates.

You need your total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol levels. These are found on a standard lipid panel blood test. You do not need LDL cholesterol or triglycerides for this calculator.

This means your age is outside the valid range for that calculation. For example, in PCE mode, 10-year risk only works for ages 40 to 79. If you are younger than 40, the calculator will still show your lifetime risk if you are between 20 and 59.