Ravilla is the illustrating detective behind FSU Health Lipidology™
By Patience Moseley FSU College of Medicine
SUMMER 2026 / FSUMED 11
On Christmas Eve in 2009, Sudha Ravilla, M. D., found herself immersed in the pages of Therapeutic Lipidology where she discovered her“ calling”— the study of lipoprotein metabolism that contributes to cardiovascular disease, the No. 1 cause of death worldwide.
Within two hours of emailing the book’ s lead author, Michael Davidson, M. D., she received an uplifting wonderful response. Ravilla was so inspired that she became determined to pursue a lifelong career in lipidology.
Today, Ravilla is one of very few board-certified lipidologists in the country and has been grandfathered-in as Diplomate of the American Board of Clinical Lipidology for life. She leads FSU Health Lipidology™ under the Florida Medical Practice Plan™, which serves as the faculty practice for the FSU College of Medicine.
Lipidology is dedicated to the study and management of lipids and lipoproteins that carry fats through the bloodstream. While people often equate it simply with“ cholesterol,” Ravilla describes lipidology as a“ cutting-edge field” that fills a void at the intersection of multiple medical specialties. She discussed with passion how she recently initiated a sophisticated medical intervention, just approved by the FDA, for a young patient with an extremely rare lipid disorder, and how the patient was ecstatic to see normal numbers for the first time ever!
“ Having FSU Health Lipidology and Dr. Ravilla join
Sudha Ravilla, M. D., uses a simple pen and a stack of scrap paper to translate complex medical data into a visual story.
the Florida Medical Practice Plan is the perfect complement to other clinical initiatives within the College of Medicine that are addressing metabolic health, including the Florida Healthy Liver Program™ and the Lifestyle Medicine practice being developed in Panama City Beach,” said Chris Mulrooney, Ph. D., associate dean for Clinical & Community Affairs and chief operating officer of Florida Medical Practice Plan.
Many of Ravilla’ s patients are referred as a last resort, but she takes pride in her ability to help patients understand their own bodies and debunk common misconceptions about lipids and lipoproteins to improve health outcomes.
Using a detective-style highly nuanced approach, Ravilla examines the underlying factors contributing to abnormal lipid levels. She considers family and patient’ s medical history to determine potential genetic contributions, along with biochemical data and lifestyle factors that may contribute to increased levels of lipoproteins in the bloodstream. She strongly believes in the medical mantra:“ Listen to your patients; they are telling you the diagnosis” attributed to Dr. William Osler, who helped revolutionize medical education by introducing the concept of a residency model, heavily focused on bedside learning for medical students.
Describing her initial consultations as a transformational visit for patients, Ravilla takes the information she learned and channels her inner artist to illustrate the processes leading to arterial blockages – while managing to write upside down. In fact, she keeps a stack of scrap paper for her patient-tailored illustrations.
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