The PREVENT Heart Risk Calculator, Explained in Plain English
What PREVENT measures
PREVENT (Predicting Risk of cardiovascular disease EVENTs) estimates the chance that you will have a heart attack, a stroke, or heart failure. Older calculators left heart failure out, even though it is one of the most common heart problems as people age.
It uses your age, sex, total and HDL cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, whether you take blood pressure or cholesterol medicine, diabetes, smoking, body mass index, and kidney function (eGFR, which comes from a creatinine blood test). It does not use race.
What your 10-year score means
Under 5%: low risk. 5% to 7.4%: borderline. 7.5% to 19.9%: intermediate. 20% or higher: high. These bands help you and your doctor decide whether lifestyle changes alone make sense or whether medicine like a statin is worth discussing.
A 10% score means that out of 100 people with numbers like yours, about 10 would be expected to have a heart attack, stroke, or heart failure in the next 10 years, and about 90 would not.
Why PREVENT gives a lower number than ASCVD
If your doctor once gave you a score from the older ASCVD calculator (the Pooled Cohort Equations), PREVENT will usually show a lower number, often around half. That is not because your heart got healthier. PREVENT was built on newer, larger groups of people, and the older tool is known to overestimate risk for many adults today.
The two scores are not interchangeable, so compare like with like when you track your number over time.
Running it yourself
You need a recent blood panel (total cholesterol, HDL, and creatinine) and a blood pressure reading. Cura Check asks for these, runs the PREVENT equations, and shows your heart risk alongside brain-health and cancer-screening factors, with nothing saved unless you ask.
Common questions
Is the PREVENT calculator better than the ASCVD calculator?
PREVENT is newer, includes heart failure and kidney function, and does not use race. Studies suggest the older ASCVD calculator overestimates risk for many people today. Many doctors now use PREVENT, but ask yours which one they rely on.
What age is the PREVENT calculator for?
Adults 30 to 79 who do not already have heart disease. It gives a 10-year risk for everyone in that range and a 30-year risk for people up to 59.
What is a good PREVENT score?
Under 5% over 10 years is considered low risk. Between 5% and 7.4% is borderline, 7.5% to 19.9% intermediate, and 20% or more high.
Keep reading
Where do your own numbers land?
Cura Check turns a 90-second questionnaire and a recent blood panel into your cardiovascular, dementia, and cancer risk picture — free, and nothing is saved unless you ask.