Dr. James Underberg
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology
New York, NY
36 years experience male
Locations
Bellevue Hospital Lipid Clinic
New York, NY
Insurances accepted
Aetna
Cigna
Oxford Health Plans
United HealthCare Insurance Company
Medicare
Office
New York, NY
About
Bio
Dr. Underberg is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine at NYU Medical School and is a member of the executive committee of the Division of General Internal Medicine. His clinical focus is Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine. He is an American Society of Hypertension Certified Specialist in Clinical Hypertension, a fellow of the Society for Vascular Medicine & Biology, and a North American Menopause Society Certified Menopause Practitioner. Dr. Underberg is the founder and President of the New York Preventive Cardiovascular Society and a member of the Board of Directors of the Northeast Chapter of the National Lipid Association. He graduated from Yale University with a BS and MS and from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. His internship and residency were completed at Bellevue Hospital Medical Center. He is currently involved in several clinical trials in the areas of hypertension, lipids, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Dr. Underberg?s Clinical Practice was recently awarded recognition by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association and the National Committee for Quality Assurance Heart-Stroke Recognition Program and the American Diabetes Association Diabetes Prevention Program. He sees patients both in his private referral practice and in the Bellevue Hospital Lipid Clinic.
SpecialtiesDoctors may have more than one area of specialty interest. Board certification in a specialty area means the doctor has completed formal training and has practice experience in that specialty, and has passed the certification examination from the corresponding accredited medical specialty board.
Doctors may have more than one area of specialty interest. Board certification in a specialty area means the doctor has completed formal training and has practice experience in that specialty, and has passed the certification examination from the corresponding accredited medical specialty board.
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology
Internal Medicine
Doctor Q&A
132 Answers
75 Agrees
The number of answers this doctor has agreed with.
A 56-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Not better-different: Both are statins, and work through the same mechanism to lower cholesterol. Crestor (rosuvastatin) is a more potent statin than zocor ( now generic as... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 41-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
? more than one prob: Low HDL and high triglcyerides (tg's) often occur together, in most cases the low HDL being caused by high tg's. Abdominal pain can come from many th... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 30-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Good, Bad, Ugly: Hdl cholesterol has many " good qualities" and in general is thought of as "protective" however, our current technologies that measure HDL cholesterol... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 32-year-old female asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Possibly: Some coconut water products may contain small amounts of lauric acid which can raise cholesterol. Not nearly as much as coconut oil or milk, however ... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 65-year-old female asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends how low: Sometimes a very low triglyceride level can be a marker of malabsorption of fat or of a genetic disorder of lipid metabolism that can be associated w... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 35-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Metabolic syndrome: Patients with obesity, Insulin resistance , pre- diabetes and metabolic syndrome often have normal LDL cholesterol levels wi low HDL and high tg's the... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 28-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
No sig change: Saturated fat will raise HDL so changing from a high saturated fat diet to one rich in poly-unsaturated fats such as nuts may lower HDL but the almond... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 37-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Muscle Aches/others: Primary side effects of statins in general are muscular, either aches, or in more severe cases ( and less common) muscle breakdown (rhabdomyolysis) wh... Read More
5.2k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
1 comment
A 35-year-old female asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
High Cholesterol: Very high cholesterol is most likely related to a genetic cause that can increase the risk of heart disease. Familial hypercholesterolemia (fh) can be... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 31-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Not a concern: Hdl cholesterol is the measure of cholesterol carried in the HDL particles in the body. We do not consume HDL cholesterol we consume cholesterol. The... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 29-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends on why : Saturated fats will raise HDL cholesterol. Fish oils, to a smaller extent will also raise HDL cholesterol (when triglycerides are high, the reason may... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 39-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Probably not: Hdl of 65 for a man or woman is considered optimal. A total cholesterol of 205 is slightly elevated, but since we do not know the LDL or triglyceride ... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 52-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends : The use of a statin or other lipid altering agent should be used in the context of that particular patients cardiovascular risk. In patients with gene... Read More
5.2k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 44-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Many do, don't try : Many medications , including those to treat cholesterol raise hdl, fibrates, Niacin and even statins. Other medications like estrogen also raise hdl, ... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 49-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Hard to tell: In general a low LDL is good but in these cases sometimes additional advanced testing of somthing called lipoproteins is indicated. It thenlebel of ap... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 49-year-old female asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Causes of Low HDL: Low HDL has many causes, including high triglycerides. A sudden drop in HDL should be evaluated .First repeat the reading, just to make sure it is not... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 74-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Unclear: Children are born with very low cholesterol levels, & do fine. Adults with mutations in genes that lead to low cholesterol levels (pcsk9) also do well... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 40-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends: Depends on how high the triglycerides (tg's) are. If greater thatn 500mg/dl then we do try to lower them with diet and medications to prevent pancreat... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 46-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
? Poor specimen : I suspect this represents poor specimen collection the lab should be able to comment n this.
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 56-year-old female asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
High HDL Cholesterol: High HDL cholesterol predicts improved outcomes for populations of patients, less heart attacks and strokes. However, for individuals, this predictive... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 47-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
High doses yes: At high doses, and depending on whether or not one has liver disease, or is taking other medications Niacin can cause liver problems. The american hea... Read More
5.2k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 40-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Potential Problems: Having an HDL cholesterol of 5 mg/dl is a concern, usually suggesting a genetic cause of low hdl, which sometimes but not always can be associated wit... Read More
5.2k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 27-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Low HDL: Low HDL cholesterol is a concern, even when LDL and triglycerides (tg's) are normal. Patients with low HDL and normal LDL / tg's can still have increa... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 44-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Many Functions: Hdl cholesterol has many functions. Often thought of as protective, it brings cholesterol from the artery wall back to the liver. It also acts as an a... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 21-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Increase Heart Risk: Diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are all independant risk factors for heart disease and stroke. When seen together, they impact risk... Read More
6.6k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 38-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends on Change: Hdl levels change based on the intervention. If a patient starts to loose weight, or change diet, or increase exercise, stop smoking or HDL will gradu... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 23-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Does many things: Hdl removes cholesterol fromlaquesnin the artery wall but also has many other functions. It is an antioxidant, has anti-inflammatory features and prot... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 38-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
FishOils Lower Trigs: Omega3 fatty acids at high doses (2-4 gms/day) do lower tg's, but are most effective when the tg'sare elevated >500mg/dl. At this level they can lower... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 39-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Varies : For men normal is >40 mg/dl, and for women >50 mg/dl. Our current guidelines suggest that >60 is a "negative" risk factor and <40 is a risk factor fo... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 39-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Hepatic insulin res: Often seen in patients with metabolic syndrome , low HDL and high triglycerides.
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Difficult to know: Vit e, ( along with vitamin k) are the two fat soluble vitamins that require chylomicrons to transport them from the intestine to the liver. In many ... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 34-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends: Depends on where test is done. Some places will offer this a a screening test, but other will require a requisition or prescription so as t have someo... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Blood test: Hdl cholesterol is part of a panel of tests called a "lipid panel". It is done via a blood sample, and this can be drawn in a doctors office or at a l... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Any can order: Any doctor and many non md's such as np's can order and interpret cholesterol results. If faced with complex results then seeing someone with an inter... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 38-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Risk depends on much: "normal" triglycerides (tg's) are <150 mg/dl. When elevated they can be associated with changes in "lipoproteins" that may cause heart disease. Not ev... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 31-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Normal is not normal: Officially, normal triglyceride (tg) levels for men and women are less than 150 mg/dl. However, based on good observational data from the framingham s... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 29-year-old female asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Yes indeed: Oral contraceptives can contain estrogen, which serves as a stimulus for the enzyme involved in manufacturing triglycerides ( fat) in the liver. While... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 40-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends on cause: High triglycerides have many causes. In patients with secondary causes, such medications or other diseases, stopping those medications or treating the... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 47-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Hard to tell: As a lipidologist i often get referred interesting cases, most recently someone with an HDL cholesterol level of 168. This patient was a high absorber... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 41-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends on cause: See my recent answer to this question. We do not use medications to raise HDL cholesterol. If there are lifestyle issues that are lowering HDL then re... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 32-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Lipid Definition: Lipids are fats. They are carried throughout the body in lipoproteins. Lipids have names like cholesterol, triglycerides and phospholipids. They are e... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 32-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
One that is tested : Many fish oil supplements are available commercially. Two currently by prescription and fda reviewed, however, there are many others that are as high,... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 48-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Yes it can be used. : Yes, Zetia (ezetimibe) is drug that blocks the absorption of cholesterol in the jejunum (small intestine). By so doing, less cholesterol is delivered... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Many types available: Crestor (rosuvastatin) is a "statin" medication, usually the class that is first choice in patients that need cholesterol lowering. There are 7 differ... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 38-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Many. Causes: There are many causes of high cholesterol- in fact in most folks it is a combination of genetics and lifestyle . Some are born with very high or low c... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 32-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Contains Lauric Acid: Lauric acid found in coconut oil, milk and even some coconut water products can rise total and HDL cholesterol. Lauric acid has other properties that ... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 44-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
NO: Allopurinol is not a treatment for high triglycerides. It is used to treat gout. There is an association between gout and cardiovascular risk factors,... Read More
5.3k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 39-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Depends on diet: Weight loss and triglycerides (tg's) are often independent of one another. Often substituting saturated fat for sugar/carbs will stimulate wgt loss, b... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 28-year-old male asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
Cars and Passengers: Hdl cholesterol (hdl-c) defines the amount of cholesterol carried in HDL particles. Cholesterol doesn't float freely in the blood .Cholesterol is a f... Read More
5.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 35-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Underberganswered
Internal Medicine Clinical Lipidology 36 years experience
As long as needed: The treatment for high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia ) is based on the cause. Is it genetic ( inherited)? In which case the treatment may be lif... Read More
5.2k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
90,000 U.S. doctors in 147 specialties are here to answer your questions, provide medical advice, write prescriptions, and more.
TestimonialsRecommendations and Thank you notes are endorsements given from patients or other doctors.
Recommendations and Thank you notes are endorsements given from patients or other doctors.
5
Recommendations
304
Thank you notes
Mar 7, 2013
Dr. Underberg is a leader in identifying and treating the lipid abnormalities that cause heart disease - the number 1 cause of death in the US
Mar 7, 2013
Dr. Underberg is a national leader in the evaluation and management of lipid disorders and hypertension. He gets my highest recommendation!
May 19, 2013
Veery accurate and worthwhile answers.
HealthTap member
Thank you, your answer was very helpful! My LDL = 63 with total chlosterol at 135. I thought that was getting too low to still take atorvastatin 10 mg anymore.
HealthTap member
Thank you, your answer was very helpful! Thank you for the info. I appreciate everything I'm learning from you
HealthTap member
Thanks for your quick reply! Is crestor 10mg enough for tg 220 and above?
Education & Training
Medical/Graduate school
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, PA
Graduated 1986MD
Residency
NYU HOSPITALS CENTER
Residency
BELLEVUE HOSPITAL CENTER
Awards
NYU School of Medicine Clinical Teaching Award 2010
NY Magazine Best Doctors 2011
Top General Internist, Third Place, New York - Winter
2013
Affiliations
NYU School of Medicine
NYU Center for Prevention of Cardiovascular DIsease
Bellevue Hospital Medical Center
Publications
The role of mipomersen therapy in the treatment of familial hypercholesterolemia
90,000 U.S. doctors in 147 specialties are here to answer your questions, provide medical advice, write prescriptions, and more.
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