health calculator

Framingham Cardiac Risk Calculator

Estimate 10-year risk of cardiovascular disease based on Framingham algorithms.

Formula Verified by Dr. Sarah Jenkins, PhD

Quick actions: Save inputs, view saved runs, print, share, or export results

Saved Runs

Inputs

Biological Sex

Age (years)

Total Cholesterol (mg/dL)mg/dL

HDL Cholesterol (mg/dL)mg/dL

Systolic BP (mmHg)mmHg

On Hypertension Meds?

Active Smoker?

Diagnosed Diabetes?

Results

10-Year CVD Risk Score

8.4%

Risk ClassificationLow Risk

Estimated Heart Age52 years

Cholesterol/HDL Ratio4.00

Bookmark this Cardiac Risk Calculator

Save this page to review and track changes in your cardiovascular risk profile as you optimize blood pressure, cholesterol, and lifestyle factors.

Formula

Framingham General CVD Risk Points Model

Risk = 1 - S(t)^exp(Sum(Beta * X) - Mean)

Estimates 10-year risk of cardiovascular disease based on cox proportional hazards regression coefficients.

Step by step

How the calculation works

1Input your sex, age, and blood lipid numbers (Total and HDL Cholesterol).
2Provide systolic blood pressure and specify if you take blood pressure medication.
3Specify your smoking status and diabetic history.
4The calculator will compute your statistical risk percentage and determine equivalent heart age.

Example

Example Risk Profile

A 50-year-old male with TC 220 mg/dL, HDL 40 mg/dL, Systolic BP 140 mmHg (treated), who is a smoker, has a 10-year risk score of 21.5% (High Risk) and an estimated Heart Age of 68 years.

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How to understand and use this calculator

The Framingham Heart Study and General CVD Risk Score

The Framingham Heart Study, started in 1948, pioneered cardiovascular epidemiology. The General Cardiovascular Disease 10-Year Risk Score (2008) is a validated clinical tool estimating the probability of experiencing a major cardiac event—such as heart attack, stroke, transient ischemic attack, or heart failure—within the next decade.

Understanding your risk helps guide preventative medicine. This is a critical metabolic baseline that should be tracked alongside body structure metrics from our BMI calculator and body fat calculator.

The Mathematics of the Cox Proportional Hazards Regression Model

The calculator implements the General Framingham CVD risk equations, which use Cox regression coefficients to weight risk factor parameters:

The score accumulates logarithmic hazards based on age, total cholesterol ($TC$), HDL cholesterol ($HDL$), systolic blood pressure ($SBP$), smoking status, and diabetes status:

For Males:

$$\beta \cdot X = 3.06117 \ln(\text{age}) + 1.12370 \ln(TC) - 0.93286 \ln(HDL) + \beta_{SBP} \ln(SBP) + 0.65451(\text{smoker}) + 0.57367(\text{diabetes})$$

*(Where $\beta_{SBP}$ is 1.99881 if treated for hypertension and 1.93303 if untreated)*

For Females:

$$\beta \cdot X = 2.32888 \ln(\text{age}) + 1.20904 \ln(TC) - 0.70833 \ln(HDL) + \beta_{SBP} \ln(SBP) + 0.52873(\text{smoker}) + 0.69154(\text{diabetes})$$

*(Where $\beta_{SBP}$ is 2.82263 if treated for hypertension and 2.76157 if untreated)*

We then calculate risk relative to the average baseline hazard of the study population ($M$):

$$\text{Risk}_{10Y} = 1 - S(t)^{\exp(\beta \cdot X - M)}$$

Where baseline survival $S(t)$ is $0.88936$ for men and $0.95012$ for women, and mean hazard $M$ is $23.9802$ for men and $26.1931$ for women.

Understanding Heart Age and Preventive Action

Heart Age is a clinical translation tool representing the age of a person with normal cardiovascular risk factors (TC 180 mg/dL, HDL 45 mg/dL, Systolic BP 125 mmHg, untreated, non-smoker, non-diabetic) who carries the same 10-year risk profile. If your heart age exceeds your chronological age, it indicates significant opportunities for cardiovascular optimization.

Improving blood pressure through training (monitored with our heart rate reserve calculator) and adopting nutritional interventions can reduce blood lipids and overall cardiac risk.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a Framingham Risk Score tell you?+

It calculates your percentage chance of developing cardiovascular disease (including heart attack, stroke, and heart failure) over the next 10 years.

What constitutes a high 10-year CVD risk?+

A score of less than 10% is considered Low risk; 10% to 20% is Moderate risk; and 20% or greater is High risk.

What is Heart Age?+

Heart Age is a metric that compares your actual age with the risk-equivalent age of someone with optimal cardiovascular risk factors.

Why does HDL cholesterol lower cardiac risk?+

HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is "good" cholesterol because it scavenges excess cholesterol from the bloodstream and returns it to the liver, reducing arterial plaque build-up.

How does smoking impact the cardiac risk score?+

Smoking increases the risk hazard multiplier because nicotine and carbon monoxide damage arterial linings, accelerate plaque buildup, and raise blood pressure.

Does diabetes increase cardiovascular risk?+

Yes. Chronically high glucose damages blood vessels and nerves that control the heart, increasing the hazard coefficient significantly in the regression model.

What is systolic blood pressure?+

Systolic blood pressure (the top number) measures the force your heart exerts on the walls of your arteries during each beat.

How does treatment for hypertension affect the calculation?+

Being on blood pressure medication is a marker of historical vascular stress, which is why the regression model applies a slightly different hazard coefficient for treated individuals.

Can I lower my cardiac risk score?+

Yes. Lowering systolic blood pressure, decreasing total cholesterol, raising HDL, and quitting smoking will immediately reduce your calculated hazard and lower your risk.

Is the Framingham score accurate for all ethnicities?+

The original Framingham study was based on a Caucasian cohort. Modern guidelines often apply calibration adjustments, but the general relative risk hazards remain highly predictive globally.

How the calculation works

1Input your sex, age, and blood lipid numbers (Total and HDL Cholesterol).

2Provide systolic blood pressure and specify if you take blood pressure medication.

3Specify your smoking status and diabetic history.

4The calculator will compute your statistical risk percentage and determine equivalent heart age.

How to understand and use this calculator

The Framingham Heart Study and General CVD Risk Score

The Mathematics of the Cox Proportional Hazards Regression Model

The calculator implements the General Framingham CVD risk equations, which use Cox regression coefficients to weight risk factor parameters:

The score accumulates logarithmic hazards based on age, total cholesterol ($TC$), HDL cholesterol ($HDL$), systolic blood pressure ($SBP$), smoking status, and diabetes status:

For Males:

$$\beta \cdot X = 3.06117 \ln(\text{age}) + 1.12370 \ln(TC) - 0.93286 \ln(HDL) + \beta_{SBP} \ln(SBP) + 0.65451(\text{smoker}) + 0.57367(\text{diabetes})$$

*(Where $\beta_{SBP}$ is 1.99881 if treated for hypertension and 1.93303 if untreated)*

For Females:

$$\beta \cdot X = 2.32888 \ln(\text{age}) + 1.20904 \ln(TC) - 0.70833 \ln(HDL) + \beta_{SBP} \ln(SBP) + 0.52873(\text{smoker}) + 0.69154(\text{diabetes})$$

*(Where $\beta_{SBP}$ is 2.82263 if treated for hypertension and 2.76157 if untreated)*

We then calculate risk relative to the average baseline hazard of the study population ($M$):

$$\text{Risk}_{10Y} = 1 - S(t)^{\exp(\beta \cdot X - M)}$$

Where baseline survival $S(t)$ is $0.88936$ for men and $0.95012$ for women, and mean hazard $M$ is $23.9802$ for men and $26.1931$ for women.

Understanding Heart Age and Preventive Action

Improving blood pressure through training (monitored with our heart rate reserve calculator) and adopting nutritional interventions can reduce blood lipids and overall cardiac risk.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a Framingham Risk Score tell you?+

It calculates your percentage chance of developing cardiovascular disease (including heart attack, stroke, and heart failure) over the next 10 years.

What constitutes a high 10-year CVD risk?+

A score of less than 10% is considered Low risk; 10% to 20% is Moderate risk; and 20% or greater is High risk.

What is Heart Age?+

Heart Age is a metric that compares your actual age with the risk-equivalent age of someone with optimal cardiovascular risk factors.

Why does HDL cholesterol lower cardiac risk?+

HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is "good" cholesterol because it scavenges excess cholesterol from the bloodstream and returns it to the liver, reducing arterial plaque build-up.

How does smoking impact the cardiac risk score?+

Smoking increases the risk hazard multiplier because nicotine and carbon monoxide damage arterial linings, accelerate plaque buildup, and raise blood pressure.

Does diabetes increase cardiovascular risk?+

Yes. Chronically high glucose damages blood vessels and nerves that control the heart, increasing the hazard coefficient significantly in the regression model.

What is systolic blood pressure?+

Systolic blood pressure (the top number) measures the force your heart exerts on the walls of your arteries during each beat.

How does treatment for hypertension affect the calculation?+

Being on blood pressure medication is a marker of historical vascular stress, which is why the regression model applies a slightly different hazard coefficient for treated individuals.

Can I lower my cardiac risk score?+

Yes. Lowering systolic blood pressure, decreasing total cholesterol, raising HDL, and quitting smoking will immediately reduce your calculated hazard and lower your risk.

Is the Framingham score accurate for all ethnicities?+

The original Framingham study was based on a Caucasian cohort. Modern guidelines often apply calibration adjustments, but the general relative risk hazards remain highly predictive globally.

Framingham Cardiac Risk Calculator

Inputs

Results

Bookmark this Cardiac Risk Calculator

Framingham General CVD Risk Points Model

How the calculation works

Example Risk Profile

Learn more about this calculation

BMI Calculation Guide: Formula, Ranges, and Limits

How to Use Do The Calculation Calculators: A Practical Step-by-Step Guide

BMI Calculator

Body Fat Calculator

TDEE Calculator

Karvonen Heart Rate Zones

Framingham Cardiac Risk Calculator

Inputs

Results

Bookmark this Cardiac Risk Calculator

Key output metrics

Cardiovascular 10-Year Risk Level

How to understand and use this calculator

The Framingham Heart Study and General CVD Risk Score

The Mathematics of the Cox Proportional Hazards Regression Model

Understanding Heart Age and Preventive Action

Frequently Asked Questions

Framingham General CVD Risk Points Model

How the calculation works

Example Risk Profile

Learn more about this calculation

BMI Calculation Guide: Formula, Ranges, and Limits

How to Use Do The Calculation Calculators: A Practical Step-by-Step Guide

BMI Calculator

Body Fat Calculator

TDEE Calculator

Karvonen Heart Rate Zones

Key output metrics

Cardiovascular 10-Year Risk Level

How to understand and use this calculator

The Framingham Heart Study and General CVD Risk Score

The Mathematics of the Cox Proportional Hazards Regression Model

Understanding Heart Age and Preventive Action

Frequently Asked Questions