The Egypt operations of global pharmaceutical company, Novartis, launched on Thursday an awareness campaign highlighting the dangers of living with elevated blood cholesterol levels, hypercholesterolemia. The campaign raises awareness of the risks and complications of high blood cholesterol levels, especially low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) known as 'bad' cholesterol, and encourages testing and greater treatment adherence. Annually, cardiovascular disease (CVD) kills more than 18 million globally, a figure that is expected to reach over 24 million by 2030. There is a well-established link between atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ACVD) and elevated LDL-C levels. Gehan Ramadan, Chief Scientific Officer at Novartis Egypt, said that 'A bedtime story' campaign seeks to highlight the emotional and psychological burdens borne by ASCVD patients. It also aims to raise the awareness of the importance of reaching the LDL-C target of 55. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 46% of all deaths in Egypt are caused by CVD. "Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases (ACVD) place a major burden on our healthcare system," said Mohamed Ossama, Head of the National Heart Institute, "The long-term impact of these diseases can be damaging to patients, families, and the wider society, and often lead to premature mortality." He added that about 37% of Egyptians have elevated LDL-C levels, which often goes unnoticed and untreated.
