A quality improvement project to improve treatment of severe hypertriglyceridemia in veterans.

Background: Severe hypertriglyceridemia (sHTG) is associated with an increased risk of acute pancreatitis. Prompt recognition and treatment of sHTG is key for prevention of acute pancreatitis and its associated life-threatening complications.

Local Problem: Patients with sHTG at a primary care clinic within the Veterans Affairs Eastern Colorado Health Care System were receiving suboptimal treatment that did not align with evidence-based guidelines.

Methods: We initiated a quality improvement (QI) project to improve the management of sHTG in an outpatient primary care clinic. Veterans with a triglyceride level between 500 and 1,500 mg/dl were included in the project.

Interventions: Project interventions included provider education, patient education, and targeted electronic consultations (e-consults) with treatment recommendations. The primary outcome was to decrease the percentage of patients with triglycerides ≥500 mg/dl by 25%. The secondary outcome was to decrease the mean triglyceride level of the patient population by 15%.

Results: Education on evaluation and treatment of sHTG was given to 100% ( n = 21) of primary care clinicians. Overall, 72.8% (95% CI [62.6-81.6%]) of patients ( n = 67) received appropriate written education materials, and 72.8% (95% CI [62.6-81.6%]) of patients ( n = 67) received a targeted e-consult. The percentage of patients with sHTG decreased by 47%. Average triglyceride level decreased from 651 to 483 mg/dl (25.8% decrease).

Conclusion: A multipronged QI project consisting of provider education, patient education, and targeted e-consults resulted in decreased triglyceride levels and improved access to specialist expertise. Clinical implications include decreased prevalence of sHTG and risk of acute pancreatitis among patients in the project.