Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death and a major cause of morbidity in the United States. The very slow development of the underlying arterial disease and its frequently sudden onset and quickly fatal course necessitate a preventive approach if substantial inroads are to be made. The positive result from the Coronary Primary Prevention Trial (CPPT) has done much to resolve the controversy regarding the benefits of lipid-lowering, and should lead to firm advice for high-risk hypercholesterolemic subjects and for the population as a whole.