Stats: 62.4% of patients with no/or only one risk factor have undiagnosed heart disease-and 50% of people with heart disease have cholesterol levels below the average.

Cholesterol monitoring is fine to determine who is at risk, but it's not definitive. Which means you can have excellent cholesterol levels and still be at risk for heart disease. (See "Ask Dr. Life" for more information.)

Current diagnostics don't cut it. You could be at great risk for heart disease and not even know it, even with conventional testing/physical exams done periodically and a fairly normal cholesterol panel.

Easy & affordable: High-tech primary prevention at Life Center. I'm happy to announce my recent affiliation with a company building a medical social network of physicians wanting to learn more about disease biomarkers and advanced lipoprotein testing.

As part of a select group of only 100 physicians internationally and the only physician in Nevada, I'll be involved in webinars and high-tech prevention summits to keep the public and medical community informed on the latest advancements in cardiovascular health and disease prevention/reversal.

In conjunction with that, I've forged a close alliance with Dr. James Erhlich, an authority in the field, to offer my patients sophisticated, accurate imaging, physiologic and laboratory testing for high-level intervention and prevention.

A clinical associate professor at the University of Colorado (endocrinology) and adjunct assistant professor at George Washington University Medical Center, Dr. Erhlich has been the forerunner for "high-tech prevention" and Chief Medical Officer of the nation's most technologically advanced and versatile screening center, dedicated to early detection of coronary and vascular disease.

The Life Center for Healthy Aging is incorporating this leading-edge, noninvasive technology (no radiation) to assess vascular health and endothelial function in all existing and new patients- taking them into a totally new realm of cardiovascular health during their next evaluation.

What it measures. I'll be assessing highly sensitive biomarkers and advanced lipoproteins, which go well beyond standard testing

My new testing will . . .

• Disclose up-to-the-minute data, showing immediate changes in your endothelium's response to your healthy aging protocols-rather than waiting six months to a year or even longer with conventional diagnostics such as a CT scan of your heart
• Determine your level of aspirin resistance-20% to 30% of us are genetically aspirin resistant and don't know it, including those with coronary heart disease and/or stents who are four times more likely to have a myocardial infarction (heart attack)
• Identify regression of coronary calcification in patients with known heart disease as well as identify subclinical atherosclerosis, existing disease and potential future disease
• Reveal your risk level for heart attack or stroke later in life
• Provide tools needed to tailor the right healthy aging program for you, reducing your risk factors and preventing heart/vascular disease

Had Tim Russert undergone this advanced endothelium assessment even two years ago, his death may well have been prevented.

Yet, he's only one of hundreds of thousands who would benefit from this proactive diagnostic approach- especially factoring in that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., taking more than 1.5 million of us each year.

Better detect, evaluate and treat your risks: New coronary risk assessment. Even helps patients with advanced heart disease to reverse the disease and convert vulnerable plaque (leads to blockages and heart attacks) to stabile plaque, using proper medical/lifestyle regimens