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Disclosures

I believe in transparency about commercial interests, particularly in a field where the line between clinical practice, product development, and patient education is increasingly blurred. The VAT-TRAP project operates across three connected arms, and the conflicts of interest sit differently in each.

1. Education (this website and the book series)

VAT-TRAP is an international educational resource operated by Medicalspace Ltd. It is not a medical provider. No medical advice is given on this website; every page carries a disclaimer to that effect, and readers are directed to their own medical practitioner for individual clinical decisions.

Running costs — hosting, AI tooling, content updates — are funded partly through an Amazon Associates affiliate programme. The Shop page links to equipment recommended in the books: tape measures (including Bluetooth models), body composition scales, BP monitors (including the Hilo wrist device), 1-lead personal ECG monitors (KardiaMobile, EMAY), hand dynamometers, sit-to-stand and strength-training tools, the N-of-1 patient diary, and selected nutrition titles by other authors.

As an Amazon Associate, Medicalspace Ltd earns from qualifying purchases — typically 1–5% of the sale, depending on the product category, in line with Amazon's published rate schedule — at no extra cost to the buyer. I declare this in line with Amazon's own disclosure rules. The commission does not influence which products are listed. Recommendations are based on what I use in my own clinical practice and what I would advise a patient to buy.

2. Diagnostic services (Surrey Cardiovascular Clinic, SCVC)

Some articles on this site link through to Surrey Cardiovascular Clinic (SCVC), a CQC-registered medical provider where I practise. I am the founder of SCVC and hold a 51% shareholding in the company; I receive dividends from the clinic in the event of profit. SCVC offers diagnostic services that are not yet routinely available on the NHS in the UK:

  • ApoB and Lp(a) testing with cardiologist-reported results (in partnership with Randox laboratories, by post)

  • Full lipid profiles with clinical interpretation

  • The CarbR test (Carbohydrate Resilience test — a medical-grade continuous glucose monitor combined with food, sleep and activity diaries and clinical reporting)

  • DEXA scanning

  • CT coronary angiography (CTCA)

  • Coronary artery calcium (CAC) scoring

  • FAI inflammation imaging

  • VAT-CT analysis

 

SCVC offers a free pre-consultation review once a medical questionnaire is completed, so that members of the public can get a clinician's opinion before committing to any test. International readers should note that SCVC is a UK provider; the books deliberately describe principles and equipment that can be used anywhere in the world.

3. Clinical infrastructure (CT scanning facility)

I own and direct the clinical CT facility used by SCVC and by referring cardiologists. I should explain how this came about, because it is the most direct conflict of interest.

For roughly twenty years, I referred my patients to other CT facilities and watched the same problems repeat: poor access, slow turnaround, inconsistent reporting, and — crucially, as the technology evolved — no integration of AI-based image analysis. The diagnostic information available to me as the referring cardiologist was a fraction of what the technology was already capable of delivering elsewhere. Eventually I decided that if a proper service did not exist, I would build one. The facility now offers same-day rapid-access diagnostic assessment for patients with chest pain — consultation, CT angiography, results, and a management plan in a single visit — together with the AI-enhanced VAT and inflammation analysis described in this series.

The conflict is real: I recommend imaging modalities that I am also in a position to provide. The reader should weigh that accordingly. The technology itself is increasingly available at other centres, and the books make this clear.

4. Trademarked methodology

I hold UK trademarks for the Current Glucose Profile (CGP™) framework and the CarbR™ test. Both trademarks exist to protect the methodology from being diluted or misapplied. The frameworks themselves are described openly in this series and can be used by any clinician.

Medicalspace Ltd — the company I own — holds the book rights, the trademarks, and operates this website. It also acts as the procurement supplier to SCVC and other medical clinics for medical devices (such as Renpho tape measures and Hume bioimpedance scales) and licenses the AI software used for CarbR test reporting. It does not provide medical services and is not a medical provider.

5. Pharmaceutical industry

I receive no funding from any pharmaceutical company. I hold no equity in any GLP-1 manufacturer or in any diagnostic equipment manufacturer. Where the books discuss specific drugs (Mounjaro, Wegovy, Rybelsus, rosuvastatin, ezetimibe, etc.) or specific devices (Caristo FAI, Dexcom, Abbott Libre, Hilo, etc.), the discussion is based on published evidence and direct clinical experience, not commercial relationship.

Why this matters

Much of what is described in the VAT-TRAP series — ApoB testing, Lp(a) measurement, CGM-based glucose profiling, FAI inflammation imaging, VAT-CT — is not yet routinely available on the NHS, and in some cases is difficult to access privately too. The infrastructure described above exists because I and a small group of colleagues built it for our patients when the standard pathways did not. I have a financial interest in that infrastructure. I also have a clinical reason for believing it should exist. Both are true, and the reader is entitled to know about both.

Questions about any of these interests are welcome at office@medicalspace.uk

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