The Northern Health and Social Care Trust opened Northern Ireland's first paediatric clinic dedicated to familial hypercholesterolaemia, an inherited condition that raises cholesterol levels.

Familial hypercholesterolaemia affects up to one in 250 people. Children of affected parents face a 50 percent risk of inheritance. Guidelines call for testing at-risk children before age 10 to enable early intervention.

The clinic delivers diagnosis and care through a team of specialists in a setting suited for children. FH specialist nurse Julie Donnelly and Dr Beckett staff the service.

Donnelly highlighted the clinic's role in offering multidisciplinary support and noted that prompt identification permits treatments to cut cholesterol and cardiovascular risks.

Such treatments aim to avert early cardiovascular disease. The Trust urges parents suspecting risk in their children to seek GP referral promptly.