Cardiovascular disease is a primary cause of mortality worldwide. Therefore, it is of major interest to identify sensitive molecular markers that predict cardiovascular events and point to therapeutic strategies that will increase lifespans. Dysregulated lipid metabolism is recognized as an established risk factor in cardiovascular diseases. However, it is still largely unknown which specific lipid molecular species reflect cardiovascular risk. In addition, understanding the whole lipidome signature in vascular pathophysiology is challenging. Recent advancements of mass-spectrometry allow researchers to detect each individual lipid species from unbiased small samples. In this review, we update the current research on lipidomic approaches in cardiovascular diseases. (C) 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.