This activity jointly sponsored by Medical Education Resources and HealthScience Media, Inc.

Physician Accreditation
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint sponsorship of Medical Education Resources and HealthScience Media Inc.  Medical Education Resources is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Credit Designation
Medical Education Resources designates this educational activity for a maximum of 35 AMA PRA Category 1 credit(s) TM.  Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Nursing Accreditation
Medical Education Resources is an approved provider of continuing nursing education by the Colorado Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

This CE activity provides 35 contact hours. Provider approval expires July 31, 2010.

Provider approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider #CEP 12299, for 35 contact hours.

Registered Dietician Accreditation
Registered dietician accreditation has been submitted and is pending approval from the Commission on Dietetic Registration.

AAFP – American Academy of Family Physicians - Prescribed credit for physicians
This program has been reviewed and is acceptable for up to 35 Prescribed credit(s) by the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Nurse Practitioner Credit Designation
Medical Education Resources designates this education activity for a maximum of 35.0 contact hours. Nurse Practitioners should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Statement of Need
Nearly 32 percent of U.S. adults (about 64 million individuals) have three or more cardiometabolic risk factors.¹ These risk factors include hypertension, insulin resistance or diabetes, abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, and prothrombotic and proinflammatory states.^2,3 The affected individuals have more than double the risk for  cardiovascular disease and nearly seven times the risk for developing diabetes. ⁴

Cardiovascular disease and diabetes have major health consequences in the United States. An estimated 79.4 million U.S. adults suffer from cardiovascular disease, and more than 870,000 died from it in 2004—an average of 24,000 deaths each day or one death every 36 seconds, according to the American Heart Association.⁵ In fact, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, surpassing cancer (about 550,000 deaths in 2004) and accidents (about 108,000 deaths). The estimated economic cost of cardiovascular disease in 2007 was nearly $432 billion.⁵

Diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death in 2002, claiming more than 73,000 lives directly and contributing to about 224,000 additional deaths, according to the American Diabetes Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.⁶  Nearly 21 million U.S. adults suffer from diabetes (7 percent of the population), with 1.5 million new cases diagnosed in 2005. Diabetics are two to four times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease, and diabetes is an important cause of blindness and kidney disease. The total economic cost of diabetes in 2002 was $132 billion.⁶

Health care professionals can play a major role in stemming these health consequences and costs by learning to identify cardiometabolic risk factors early and manage them properly. The 2008 Cardiometabolic Health Congress will translate the latest, cutting-edge medical research into practical, clinical approaches for reducing cardiovascular and metabolic risk. The goal is to provide the medical community with evidence-based interventions to improve health outcomes and quality of life for patients at increased risk.

• Explain the interrelationships between the various cardiometabolic risk factors and their impact on cardiovascular health.
• Apply evidence-based strategies for prevention, screening, and treatment of cardiometabolic risk factors to their clinical practice.
• Identify which interventions, including lifestyle changes and various drugs in combination, are most appropriate for particular patients based on their risk profile.
• Discuss the potential role of emerging therapies for managing cardiometabolic risk and further reducing morbidity and mortality in affected patients.

Target Audience
Advanced-level clinicians responsible for the prevention, diagnosis, and management of cardiometabolic risk.

1. Ford ES et al. “Increasing prevalence of the metabolic syndrome among U.S. adults.” Diabetes Care. 2004; 27:2444-2449.
2. American Heart Association. “Metabolic Syndrome—Statistics.” Available at www.americanheart.org. Accessed  December 14, 2007.
3. Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults. Executive Summary of the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III) JAMA. 2001;285: 2486-2497.
4. Wilson PWF et al. “Metabolic syndrome as a precursor of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus.” Circulation. 2005; 112: 3066-3072.
5. Rosamond W et al. “Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2007 Update, A Report From the American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee.” Available at http://circ.ahajournals.org. Accessed December 14, 2007.
6. The American Diabetes Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “National Diabetes Fact Sheet.” Available at   http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/pdf/ndfs_2005.pdf. Accessed December 14, 2007.