Podcast - Women and Familial Hypercholesterolemia

Familial Hypercholesterolemia, FH for short. It is an inherited disorder that leads to aggressive and premature cardiovascular disease. In FH patients, genetic mutations makes the liver incapable of metabolizing (or removing) excess LDL (the bad kind of cholesterol). This includes problems like heart attacks, strokes, and even narrowing of our heart valves.  With this series of podcasts we will learn really what FH is, how to manage it, FH and Children, and women.


Podcast Description

OB/GYN and FH Foundation, Board Member Dr. Maria Sophocles and Dr. Laurence Sperling, the Founder and Director of The Heart Disease Prevention Center at Emory discuss the importance of early diagnosis and treatment of Familial Hypercholesterolemia for women, how FH changes women’s risk for early heart disease and what they can do about it, as well as what women need to know about managing FH during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Podcast Participant Bios

Dr. Maria Sophocles

Doctor Maria Sophocles Dr. Sophocles is a Board-certified OB/GYN and currently the Medical Director of Women’s Healthcare of Princeton, which she founded, a progressive medical practice focusing on needs of menopausal and adolescent women. She is also an attending physician at the University Hospital of Princeton at Plainsboro where she performs minimally invasive Gynecologic surgery.

Dr. Laurence Sperling

Doctor Laurence Sperling Dr. Sperling the Founder and Director of The Heart Disease Prevention Center at Emory.  He is currently Professor of Medicine (Cardiology) at the Emory University School of Medicine and Professor of Global Health in the Hubert Department of Global Health in the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University.

The FH Foundation is a patient-centered nonprofit organization, dedicated to research, advocacy, and education for all forms of Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH). Its mission is to raise awareness of FH and save lives by increasing the rate of early diagnosis and encouraging proactive treatment. If left untreated, this life-threatening genetic disorder leads to aggressive cardiovascular disease in men, women, and children of all races and ethnicities around the world.