Accuracy of the ACC/AHA Cardiovascular Risk Calculator Is Challenged

Since the 2013 release of the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) 10-year cardiovascular risk calculator (NEJM JW Gen Med Dec 15 2013 and J Am Coll Cardiol 2013 Nov 12 [e-pub]), several analyses have challenged its accuracy (Lancet 2013; 382:1762 and JAMA Intern Med 2014; 174:1964). Because the calculator is used to select patients for statin therapy, the implications of inaccuracy are important.

In this new analysis, researchers used data from the MESA study — a contemporary, multiethnic, prospective epidemiologic study — to examine the accuracy of five risk-score calculators, including the ACC/AHA calculator. The cohort included 4227 people (age range, 50–74) without clinical cardiovascular disease or di…