A 360° perspective on cardiovascular prevention: the International Lipid Expert Panel SiMple tIps for the heaLthy hEart (ILEP-SMILE)

Maciej Banach; Federica Fogacci; Atanas G Atanasov; Anca Pantea Stoian; Jacek Jóźwiak; Ibadete Bytyçi; Ivan Pećin; Niki Katsiki; Mohsen Mazidi; Ioanna Gouni-Berthold; Peter E Penson; Dan Gaita; Arrigo F G Cicero; International Lipid Expert Panel (ILEP)

doi:10.5114/aoms/205732

A 360° perspective on cardiovascular prevention: the International Lipid Expert Panel SiMple tIps for the heaLthy hEart (ILEP-SMILE)

Arch Med Sci. 2025 May 29;21(3):711-718. doi: 10.5114/aoms/205732. eCollection 2025.

Authors

Maciej Banach^{1

2

3}, Federica Fogacci⁴, Atanas G Atanasov^{5

6

7}, Anca Pantea Stoian⁸, Jacek Jóźwiak⁹, Ibadete Bytyçi^{10

11

12}, Ivan Pećin^{13

14}, Niki Katsiki^{15

16}, Mohsen Mazidi¹⁷, Ioanna Gouni-Berthold¹⁸, Peter E Penson^{19

20}, Dan Gaita²¹, Arrigo F G Cicero^{4

22}; International Lipid Expert Panel (ILEP)

Affiliations

¹ Center for Atherosclerosis and Cardiovascular Diseases Prevention, Collegium Medicum, John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin, Poland.
² Department of Preventive Cardiology and Lipidology, Medical University of Lodz (MUL), Lodz, Poland.
³ Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
⁴ Hypertension and Cardiovascular Risk Research Unit, Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
⁵ Institute of Genetics and Animal Biotechnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Magdalenka, Poland.
⁶ Laboratory of Natural Products and Medicinal Chemistry (LNPMC), Center for Global Health Research, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMATS), Thandalam, Chennai, India.
⁷ Ludwig Boltzmann Institute Digital Health and Patient Safety, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
⁸ Department of Diabetes, Nutrition and Metabolic Diseases, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania.
⁹ Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Opole, Poland.
¹⁰ Clinic of Cardiology, University Clinical Centre of Kosovo, Prishtina, Kosovo.
¹¹ Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
¹² Medical Faculty, University of Prishtina, Prishtina, Kosovo.
¹³ Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Metabolic Diseases, University Hospital Center Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
¹⁴ Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia.
¹⁵ Department of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, International Hellenic University, Thessaloniki, Greece.
¹⁶ School of Medicine, European University Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus.
¹⁷ Clinical Trial Service Unit, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
¹⁸ Center for Endocrinology, Diabetes and Preventive Medicine, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
¹⁹ School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK.
²⁰ Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science (LCCS), Liverpool, UK.
²¹ Institute for Cardiovascular Diseases, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Victor Babes, Research Center IBCVTIM, Timisoara, Romania.
²² Cardiovascular Medicine Unit, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna, Bologna, Italy.

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), particularly atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), is the most common cause of death worldwide. Despite decades of research into lifestyle factors and medications, we still cannot effectively prevent the occurrence of ASCVD or the many incident CVD events and their complications. Yet, in most countries, only a small percentage of the healthcare budget is allocated to (primary) prevention, and only a few nations have introduced effective integrated (coordinated) programmes in primary prevention to promote health education, invest in health as early as possible, and prevent adverse CVD events. The International Lipid Expert Panel SiMple tIps for the heaLthy hEart (ILEP-SMILE) responds to this significant ineffectiveness by offering the most comprehensive population approach, including early, effective education, improvement of all recognised risk factors, alongside those that remain frequently unmeasured, such as lipoprotein(a), factors which are often overlooked such as sleep disturbances and alcohol consumption, and the challenging aspect of stress, and its effect on cardiovascular health. Finally, ILEP-SMILE places considerable emphasis on adherence as a result of education; without it, even efficient lifestyle changes and the most innovative drugs may not yield the expected outcomes. This is also a loud call to action and international collaboration to jointly address the lifetime burden of cardiovascular disease.

Keywords: International Lipid Expert Panel SiMple tIps for the heaLthy hEart (ILEP-SMILE); alcohol consumption; cardiovascular risk factors; diet; education; exercise; lipid disorders; sleep disturbances.