Health Lens · Heart health

Could you know you were heading toward a heart attack before it happened?

A risk check can reveal a pattern worth acting on. It cannot tell you that a heart attack is certain—or when one will occur.

By LensEvidence checked 4 September 2026About 6 minutes

The shortest answer

Sometimes, you can see elevated risk before symptoms.

A Heart Health Check brings several established risk factors together to estimate a person’s chance of a cardiovascular event over the next five years. It is designed for people without known cardiovascular disease who meet the guideline’s age and risk criteria.

The result is a probability used to guide a conversation about prevention. It is not a diagnosis, a guarantee, or a countdown.

Editorial illustration showing ordinary life beside a quiet cardiovascular risk assessment — Blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, age and other factors can matter before a person feels unwell. AI-assisted editorial illustration.

What the check does

It combines risk factors. It does not hunt for one magic number.

The Australian calculator uses clinical information including age, sex, smoking, systolic blood pressure and cholesterol. A clinician also considers conditions and circumstances that can change how the result should be interpreted.

AgeBlood pressureCholesterolSmokingDiabetesOther clinical factors

Who the national guidance covers

45–79

Adults without known cardiovascular disease

A routine cardiovascular risk assessment is recommended within this age range.

35–79

People with diabetes

Assessment starts earlier because diabetes materially changes cardiovascular risk.

30–79

First Nations people

Assessment starts earlier; individual risk-factor checks may begin earlier again.

These are population guidelines, not a personal order. Your clinician can tell you whether the assessment applies to you and how often it should be repeated.

Editorial split scene distinguishing preventive screening from urgent assessment of symptoms — Prevention and emergency care are different paths. Symptoms do not wait for a scheduled check. AI-assisted editorial illustration.

No symptoms

Ask about prevention.

A scheduled appointment can assess risk, check measurements and decide whether changes to treatment or daily habits would be useful.

Possible symptoms

Act now.

Chest pain or discomfort, breathlessness, nausea, dizziness, a cold sweat, or pain in the arm, jaw, back or shoulder may be warning signs.

Call Triple Zero (000) immediately.

What the result can change

The value is not knowing your fate. It is finding choices while there is time to make them.

Depending on the result and the person, the next conversation may cover blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking, physical activity, nutrition, medicines or further clinical assessment.

Lower risk does not mean zero risk. Higher risk does not mean an event is inevitable. The estimate is useful because prevention can respond to probability without pretending probability is certainty.

Show me the evidence

Australian guidance, opened.

Heart Health CheckWho is eligible and what the assessment measuresOpen source ↗Risk calculatorAustralian guideline for assessing cardiovascular disease riskOpen source ↗Warning signsWhat to do if you think you are having a heart attackOpen source ↗

Checked 4 September 2026 General information only. Clinical guidance and eligibility can change; seek individual advice from a qualified health professional.