Heart Risk Calculator

Family history is one of the most important — and most overlooked — factors in heart health. Standard tools reduce it to a simple yes or no checkbox. This app helps you explore who in your family was affected, what happened, and how early those events occurred, so you can have a more informed conversation with your healthcare provider.

What this app does:

• Organizes your reported family cardiovascular history into a clear, structured summary
• Highlights family history patterns that standard tools may not fully capture
• Helps you prepare meaningful questions to bring to your doctor
• Generates a discussion-ready summary you can share with your healthcare provider

What this app does NOT do:

• Does not diagnose or treat any medical condition
• Does not predict your personal risk of heart disease
• Does not replace professional medical advice or standard risk calculators
• Does not collect, store, or share your personal health information

How it works:

Enter basic information about family members who experienced cardiac events — their relationship to you, their age at the time, and the nature of the event. The app organizes this into a family history pattern summary using the Inherited Hazard Coefficient (IHC), an evidence-informed framework developed by Peter Megdal, PhD, and grounded in peer-reviewed cardiovascular research.

Why family history matters:

Research published in Circulation, JAMA Cardiology, and the European Heart Journal shows that early cardiac events in close relatives — particularly siblings — carry a stronger inherited signal than standard tools recognize. A sibling with a premature heart attack confers an odds ratio of 2.48. Standard calculators were not designed to capture this level of detail. This app helps you organize that information so your doctor can factor it into your care.

For educational use only:

This app is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It does not assess your personal likelihood of disease, does not constitute medical advice, and has not been validated as a clinical diagnostic instrument. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making any health decisions.

Research by Peter Megdal, PhD — CuringHeartDisease.com