> and risk of adverse events are correlated to how high and how long levels were maintained.
Is there a way to measure this though. How can I tell what my current level of damage is.
GP got the usual indicators into shape. Is all the 'racking up damage' reversed in OPs case ?
It's a cumulative thing. There are ways to ascertain the damage, but not through routine tests.
>GP got the usual indicators into shape. Is all the 'racking up damage' reversed in OPs case ?
Particularly in the case of cardiovascular damage like atherosclerosis and resulting kidney damage, narrowing arteries, etc, no it's not reversed.
Well, what are these ways.
Coronary calcium scan to check for the progress of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries, ultrasound of the kidneys, maybe the heart to check for left ventricular hypertrophy (or do you need an echocardiogram for that?), ultrasound for the carotid arteries, etc.
Because the labs are just indicators of whether or not damage is being done.
If you have high LDL for example, disease state is correlated to how long, and how high LDL levels have been. (The evidence for that is robust.) So for example, while you can improve those levels in 6 months, that doesn't mean you weren't racking up damage for the previous 10 years.
This is a common thing with most health indicators actually: blood pressure, LDL, blood sugar, etc. End organ damage, and risk of adverse events are correlated to how high and how long levels were maintained.