Asking someone what a normal cholesterol level is is a bit like asking what a normal height is.
I think you've got to get the whole thing into perspective, in most cases, raised cholesterol, is just part of the bigger picture in making an assessment for risk of heart disease, and other factors are usually taken into account (BP, family history, smoking etc.)
In certain groups, we give a drug to lower the cholesterol level whatever the initial result (ie those who have had a heart attack etc), as
any reduction reaps benefits.
In fit healthy pilots, we use the result (and it's fractions- HDL and LDL) to give us an idea of what your risk of heart disease in the next 10 years will be (Using something called the
Framingham Score). Most fit healthy pilots will find that their risk is moderately low, despite a slightly elevated cholesterol, in these cases we'd give the usual advice about diet, healthy lifestyle etc.
In those who's risk is above a certain level, a tablet (usually a "statin" ) would be given to lower the cholesterl level.
A level of 5.2 is slightly elevated, the threshold your nurse is talking about, is the level we hope to achieve if drug treatment is commenced. In terms of how you compare to the general population, you are probably average.
Fasting tends to give a "baseline" result- the reason we use fasting tests is because most of the trials in the area use fasting results.
The system 'aint perfect- our friends at the N.I.C.E. are about to refine the science slightly- when I digest the paper, I'll try and post a "sticky" on the subject.
In the mean time, enjoy ya'mackerel
