Cardiovascular Age Estimate Calculator

How it is calculated

The tool uses the Framingham general CVD risk function (D'Agostino et al., Circulation 2008) with the coefficients published by the Framingham Heart Study. Men: 3.06117 × ln(age) + 1.12370 × ln(total cholesterol) − 0.93263 × ln(HDL) + 1.93303 × ln(SBP) if untreated or 1.99881 × ln(SBP) if treated + 0.65451 if smoker + 0.57367 if diabetic; risk = 1 − 0.88936^{exp(sum − 23.9802)}. Women: 2.32888, 1.20904, −0.70833, 2.76157 (untreated) or 2.82263 (treated), 0.52873 and 0.69154; risk = 1 − 0.95012^{exp(sum − 26.1931)}. Cholesterol is in mg/dL and SBP is systolic pressure in mmHg. Heart age is the age at which the same sum is reached with normal risk factors (SBP 125 untreated, total cholesterol 180, HDL 45, non-smoker, no diabetes): heart age = exp((sum − normal part) ÷ age coefficient), the same age the Framingham online calculator finds by search. It is rounded to whole years and shown as “> 85” above 85 and “< 30” below 30. Inputs must be within the ranges of the Framingham calculator: age 30–74, systolic pressure 90–200 mmHg, total cholesterol 100–405 mg/dL and HDL 10–100 mg/dL; anything outside, or a missing value, shows no result.

Common mistakes

• Entering cholesterol in mmol/L. The fields are in mg/dL; multiply mmol/L by 38.67 for cholesterol (5.2 mmol/L ≈ 201 mg/dL).
• Entering diastolic pressure. The field is the top (systolic) number.
• Leaving “treated for high blood pressure” at No while taking blood-pressure medicine. Treated pressure carries a higher coefficient, so the risk would be understated.
• Using it after a heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular disease. The function was built for people without it and does not apply.
• Reading the heart age as a diagnosis or comparing it with a different score. It is a Framingham estimate for adults 30 to 74; newer scores can give a different figure.