Chapter Update: The Latest from the Pacific

The Pacific Chapter of the National Lipid Association continues to be demographically and geographically diverse. We currently have 424 members (about 15 percent of the NLA membership in the U.S.) who are scattered among nine states comprising roughly 1,434,027 square miles of land. This translates into a PLA membership density of one member per 3,382 square miles. Since many PLA members are congregated in larger cities, and there are numerous areas in the West that are sparsely populated, this means there are many communities in which no lipidologists are available.

Accordingly, this represents a great opportunity for providers who have the desire to identify themselves as a lipidologist with the goal of serving the clinical needs of deserving patients with dyslipidemia. Various resources are available from the NLA to enable providers in this endeavor, including extensive online resources, printed publications, such as the Journal of Clinical Lipidology and LipidSpin, three yearly meetings, the triannual Lipid Academy training program (the next program will be held March 17–18, 2016, in San Diego), the triannual Masters in Lipidology training program (the next program will be held March 17–18, 2016, in San Diego), and certification through the American Board of Clinical Lipidology (ABCL) and the Accreditation Council for Clinical Lipidology (ACCL).

The PLA and SWLA jointly hosted the superb Spring Clinical Lipid Update meeting that was held February 27–March 1, 2015, in Denver. In addition to this meeting, the PLA board endorsed two non-profit regional CME/CE meetings this year. The outstanding inaugural two- day Pacific Northwest Cardiovascular Summit chaired by Dr. Michael Shapiro was held at the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Ore. Oct. 3–4, 2015. The meeting was divided into sessions on Preventive Cardiology and Lipidology, Structural Heart Disease, and Heart Failure. The topics covered in the preventive cardiology and lipidology session included triglycerides and cardiovascular risk, dysfunctional HDL and oxidant/inflammatory stress, cholesterol management in atherogenic dyslipidemia, and discussion of clinical cases. It is hoped that this will become an annual event.

The PLA board also endorsed the excellent 7th Annual Orange County Symposium that was chaired by Drs. Robert Greenfield, Paul Rosenblit, and Nathan Wong on Oct. 17, 2015 in Costa Mesa, Calif. The comprehensive agenda addressed many topics including the NLA Recommendations, statin intolerance, women and heart disease, hypertension guidelines, hypertriglyceridemia, glycemic control in type 2 diabetes, and lifestyle modification. The upcoming 2016 NLA Spring Clinical Lipid Update will be co- hosted by the PLA and MWLA and will be held at the Omni Hotel in San Diego on March 18–20, 2016. More information is available online at lipid.org/springclu. We look forward to seeing you there!