Dr. Matt DeVane

Preventive Cardiologist
Podcast Host: Living Heart Smart
Heart Disease is Preventable.

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

My mission in life is to have everyone over the age of 40 get a Coronary Artery Calcium (CAC) score. I have seen it change HUNDREDS of lives. #WhatsYourCAC?

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

I am a cardiologist.
I take:
Rosuvastatin 40
Ezetimibe 10
Daily.
No side effects.
No cardiac history.
LDL now…….40s.
👊👊👊👊👊👊👊

[Michael Albert, MD @MichaelAlbertMD]

I'm 36. I'm a physician. I take a statin—and ezetimibe—every day.

No symptoms. No cardiac history. Just an honest read of the evidence.

Here's what I found—and why I stopped waiting for a reason to act.

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Ohhh- I see increasing happiness in my near future. This graph alone makes me happy.

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

A pill a day will keep the weight away.

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Keep it simple. You work too hard to drag your body down with bad fuel.
Newest guidelines from the AHA:

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

So happy about this data

[Harvard Health @HarvardHealth]

If you're a regular drinker of coffee or tea, you might rely on that morning cup to think more clearly through the day. A new study suggests your daily habit might help your brain in the long term, too. #HarvardHealth

https://t.co/C32DYjq3Jm

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Looks like pushing yourself really pays off. Love it!!

[Michael Mindrum, MD @MichaelMindrum]

The exercise prescription most of us learned was built around volume: 150 minutes a week, any movement counts, accumulate time and the benefits follow. For most chronic diseases, that serves well but for dementia and cardiovascular disease, data from nearly half a million people suggest that how hard you push matters more than how long you go. Let me explain. 🧵

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Thank you WSJ!! Life changing for many.

[The Wall Street Journal @WSJ]

Measuring cholesterol levels has long been the main way doctors assess the risk of heart disease. Increasingly, people are opting, too, for a simple, relatively affordable test: a coronary artery calcium scan, or CAC. https://t.co/uqqKSeL6yx

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Statins for your heart… and brain.

[Thomas Dayspring @Drlipid]

New mega-analysis showing statin therapy is associated with reduced risk of AD and related out comes, https://t.co/yGHKueEnl0 @nationallipid @society_eas @ASPCardio @escardio @atherosociety @FamilyHeartFdn @MenopauseOrg

[European Society of Cardiology Journals @ESC_Journals]

Wearable devices and cardiovascular health: revolutionizing remote monitoring and disease prevention. Read this State-of-the-Art review just published in #EHJ
👉 https://t.co/TvJzKXBoxk

@RoccoMontone @ehj_ed #prevention

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

“0ne threshold. All high risk patients. No excuse.”
Perfect.

[Pablo Corral MD @drpablocorral]

☝️It’s time to stop overcomplicating this.

👉LDL-C < 55 mg/dL.
For anyone with:
∙✅ Prior MACE (MI, stroke, revascularization)
∙✅ Type 2 diabetes
∙✅ High or very high cardiovascular risk — by any validated score
∙✅ Significant subclinical atherosclerosis on imaging

👉And < 40 mg/dL for:
∙✅ Polyvascular disease
∙✅ Recurrent events despite optimal therapy

📍We have the tools:
💊Statins. Ezetimibe. Bempedoic acid.
💉PCSK9 inhibitors. Inclisiran.

📍We have the evidence.
📍We have the targets.

👉Less than 25% of ASCVD patients reach LDL-C < 55 mg/dL in real life.

💊💉That’s not a pharmacology problem. That’s a mindset problem.

📍Simplify the decision. Intensify the therapy. Protect the patient.

📍One threshold. All high-risk patients. No excuses.

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Well said Dr Albert! 🎉👊

[Michael Albert, MD @MichaelAlbertMD]

I'm tired of watching people die from preventable heart disease.

The cholesterol wars are over. LDL causes atherosclerosis. That's not a pharmaceutical talking point—it's the convergent conclusion of genetics, Mendelian randomization, and 170,000+ patients across 26 randomized trials.

Next week, we put diet tribalism and LDL denialism aside and go straight to the science that saves lives.
Sign up to receive my newsletter: https://t.co/88bYv6xIjG

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Who doesn’t like superior outcomes?!?!

[Pablo Corral MD @drpablocorral]

ACC 2026 | Two Trials, One Message: Lower LDL-C Targets Deliver Superior CV Outcomes

👉Two landmark trials presented today at #ACC26 in New Orleans converge on the same conclusion: being aggressive with LDL-C lowering saves lives and prevents events — whether in secondary or high-risk primary prevention.

📌 VESALIUS-CV Diabetes Subgroup (JAMA, March 28, 2026)

👉Evolocumab in high-risk primary prevention — no prior MI/stroke, no known significant atherosclerosis, diabetes
∙3,655 patients, median follow-up 4.8 years
∙LDL-C achieved: 52 mg/dL (evolocumab) vs. 111 mg/dL (placebo) at 48 weeks
∙3-P MACE: 5.0% vs. 7.1% — HR 0.69 (95% CI 0.52–0.91), p=0.009
∙4-P MACE: 7.6% vs. 10.5% — HR 0.69, p=0.001
∙All-cause mortality: HR 0.76 (95% CI 0.61–0.95)
∙Benefit emerged after year 1 — consistent with atherosclerosis prevention rather than plaque stabilization
∙Median achieved LDL-C at 96 weeks: 44 mg/dL — approaching the extreme-risk threshold

📌 Ez-PAVE (NEJM, March 28, 2026)

👉LDL-C target <55 vs. <70 mg/dL in established ASCVD — a head-to-head RCT
∙3,048 patients, 3-year follow-up, 17 Korean centers
∙Median LDL-C achieved: 56 vs. 66 mg/dL
∙Primary composite (CV death, MI, stroke, revascularization, UA hospitalization): 6.6% vs. 9.7% — HR 0.67 (95% CI 0.52–0.86), p=0.002
∙Nonfatal MI: HR 0.46 | Any revascularization: HR 0.63
∙No signal of harm: no excess diabetes, myopathy, or liver toxicity; creatinine elevation was actually lower in the intensive arm
∙Critical gap: only 60.8% reached <55 mg/dL at 3 years; PCSK9i used in only 2.3% — underscoring the implementation crisis in real-world practice

🔑 The Integrated Message
∙The “lower is better” paradigm now has direct RCT support across the CV risk continuum — from primary prevention with diabetes to established ASCVD
∙VESALIUS-CV challenges the binary secondary/primary prevention framework: a diabetic patient without clinical ASCVD already benefits from PCSK9i-level LDL-C reduction
∙Ez-PAVE validates ESC/EAS 2025 guideline targets with hard outcome data — no longer just extrapolated from drug trials
∙The real-world gap remains unacceptable: <25% of ASCVD patients reach <55 mg/dL; <10% receive ezetimibe; ~1% receive PCSK9i
∙Together, these data support a universal aggressive approach: early combination therapy, lower thresholds, and broader access to non-statin agents

DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2600283

DOI:10.1001/jama.2026.3277

@society_eas
@nationallipid
@LipidJournal
@ACCinTouch

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Aim low (LDL) to prevent heart attacks. It works.

[NEJM @NEJM]

Presented at #ACC26:

Among patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, targeting an LDL cholesterol level below 55 mg per deciliter led to a lower 3-year risk of cardiovascular events than targeting a level below 70 mg per deciliter. Full Ez-PAVE trial results: https://t.co/q0vNdAoJJL

Editorial: Paving the Road toward Targeted Lipid Lowering https://t.co/zUwmo0r0n4

@ACCinTouch

[Louisa Nicola @louisanicola_]

Your Daily Coffee Might Be Protecting Your Brain

A 2026 JAMA study of ~500,000 people just confirmed something powerful:

1. Sweet spot matters
• 2–3 cups coffee OR 1–2 cups tea daily
• Linked to lower risk of dementia, stroke, and post-stroke decline

2. Not just prevention
• Better visual memory
• Stronger decision-making
• Faster processing speed

Why it works
• Anti-inflammatory compounds protect brain cells
• Improves blood flow to the brain
• Supports insulin sensitivity linked to Alzheimer’s risk

This isn’t just a morning habit. It’s long-term brain protection in a cup.

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

CAC scoring: a GAME CHANGER in assessing heart disease risk. 🤯 No more guessing! This non-invasive test lets you see your risk. 🤔 Wondering if it's right for you? Talk to your doctor! 🫀 #hearthealth #cardiovasculardisease #prevention

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Worried about dementia?
Exercise!!

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Yes

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

AFib got you feeling like your heart's doing the tango without you? 🕺💃 Catheter ablation is getting seriously good at calming things down! It's not just a last resort anymore – can zap away those rogue heartbeats and get you back to feeling normal. Less racing, less worry. ❤️ #AFib #Ablation #HeartHealth

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

Diabetes isn't just about blood sugar - think of it as a vascular disease! 🩸 It DOUBLES your risk of heart problems.

Good news: keeping that HbA1c under 7% protects BOTH your tiny & major blood vessels.

Blood sugar control = ❤️ protection! #DiabetesAwareness #HeartHealth #HbA1c

[Dr. Matt DeVane @drdevane]

AFib and weight are definitely linked! 🤯 Studies show obesity can increase AFib risk by about 50%. But here's the good news: losing even 10% of your weight can significantly reduce AFib risk and help keep your heart rhythm in check. ❤️ #AFib #HeartHealth #WeightLoss #HealthyLifestyle