The Patient You Might Be Missing: Severe Hypertriglyceridemia in Clinical Practice

Host: Charles Turck, PharmD, BCPS, BCCCP Guest: Erin D. Michos, MD, MHS Severe hypertriglyceridemia (sHTG) affects more than 3 million people, but it often flies under the clinical radar.1-3 When triglycerides are at or above a 500 mg/dL threshold, it’s no longer just an isolated lab value—it’s a level of hypertriglyceridemia where the clinical implications change, and where a more careful evaluation for underlying causes and risk becomes important.4 That’s why Dr. Charles Turck sits down with Dr. Erin Michos to discuss what sHTG is, why it’s so important to identify, and how we can effectively manage this condition to improve patients’ overall health and reduce complication risk. Dr. Erin Michos is a Professor of Medicine, Director of Women’s Cardiovascular Health, and Associate Director of Preventive Cardiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. References: Saadatagah S, Larouche M, Naderian M, et al. Recognition and management of persistent chylomicronemia: a joint expert clinical consensus by the National Lipid Association and the American Society for Preventive Cardiology. Am J Prev Cardiol. 2025;22:100978. doi:10.1016/j.ajpc.2025.100978 Sanchez RJ, Ge W, Wei W, Ponda MP, Rosenson RS. The association of triglyceride levels with the incidence of initial and recurrent acute pancreatitis. Lipids Health Dis. 2021;20(1):72. doi:10.1186/s12944-021-01488-8 Sikora Kessler A, Baum SJ, Kutrieb E, et al. Rates …