Dr. Nathan Trentham, MD
Not yet claimedLipidologist, Internal medicine doctor · Physician (MD)
Etowah, TN
Physician certified in clinical lipidology by the American Board of Clinical Lipidology, practicing at Internal Med Assoc. of McMinn County in Etowah, TN. Lipidologists manage cholesterol, triglycerides, and lipoprotein(a) with guideline-based care.
About Dr. Nathan Trentham, MD
Updated Sep 20, 2026Dr. Nathan Trentham is an internal medicine doctor and lipid specialist (a doctor who focuses on cholesterol and blood fats). He practices with Internal Medicine Associates of McMinn County in Etowah, Tennessee, and is affiliated with Starr Regional Medical Center. He also appears at Knoxville locations, including a Summit Medical Group listing and a faculty listing in the Department of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine in Knoxville.
He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Clinical Lipidology. He went to medical school at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine (Class of 1991) and did his internal medicine residency at the University of Tennessee College of Medicine at Chattanooga from 1995 to 1998. The National Lipid Association named him a Fellow (FNLA).
His public work centers on cholesterol and prevention. Healthgrades notes he treats familial hypercholesterolemia (an inherited high-cholesterol condition) more often than similar providers. On X he posts as "@TheLipidGuy" and describes himself as Medical Director of the Preventative Cardiology Clinic with University Cardiology in Knoxville, using the hashtag #LowerIsBetter.
Federal Open Payments records list $318,191.79 in industry payments to him across 1,176 records from 2021 through 2025. The largest payers were Amgen ($261,047.74), Lilly USA ($28,138.63), and Esperion Therapeutics ($12,008.85) — companies that make cholesterol and diabetes drugs. Payments from drug companies to doctors are common, legal, and publicly reported; they do not by themselves indicate a problem.
- Board certifications
- Certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Clinical Lipidology. summitmedical.com
- Fellow of National Lipid Association
- Listed as "Nathan C. Trentham, MD, FNLA" among new Fellows of the National Lipid Association. lipid.org
- Medical school and residency
- Medical degree from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine (Class of 1991); internal medicine residency at the University of Tennessee College of Medicine at Chattanooga, 1995-1998. doximity.com
- Practice and hospital ties
- Practices at Internal Medicine Associates of McMinn County in Etowah and is affiliated with Starr Regional Medical Center; Healthgrades also lists University of Tennessee Medical Center. doctor.webmd.com
- University faculty listing
- Listed on the faculty roster of the Department of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine, Knoxville. com.utmck.edu
- Focus on inherited high cholesterol
- Healthgrades notes he treats familial hypercholesterolemia more often than similar providers. healthgrades.com
- Two practice locations
- An insurer directory lists him at both 1940 Alcoa Hwy in Knoxville and 301 Grady Rd in Etowah. phppd.providence.org
- Licensed in Tennessee
- Doximity notes he is currently licensed to practice medicine in Tennessee; Tennessee license number 029515 is on file with directory records. npino.com
- Industry payments reported
- CMS Open Payments lists $318,191.79 across 1,176 records for 2021-2025, with Amgen as the largest payer at $261,047.74. openpaymentsdata.cms.gov
- State medical society member
- Listed in the Tennessee Medical Association member directory under Internal Medicine. members.tnmed.org
Worth knowing
- Directory records disagree about his medical school. Healthgrades lists a 1999 graduation from State University of New York Downstate, while Doximity, WebMD, and federal records point to the University of Tennessee in 1991. This appears to be a directory error rather than a dispute about his training. healthgrades.com
- His role as Medical Director of the Preventative Cardiology Clinic at University Cardiology comes from his own X profile and was not independently confirmed by another source. x.com
- Open Payments shows $261,047.74 of his 2021-2025 industry payments came from Amgen, which makes cholesterol-lowering drugs in the area he specializes in. Such payments are legal and publicly reported; patients may wish to ask about them. openpaymentsdata.cms.gov
- The research for this profile did not complete checks of license discipline records, court dockets, local news, or peer-reviewed publications. No adverse records turned up in the directories reviewed, but these categories were not confirmed either way. doximity.com
Industry payments (CMS Open Payments)
Open the CMS recordFederal law requires drug and device companies to report what they pay clinicians: meals, travel, speaking, consulting, and research. Payments are common and legal; the point is that you can see them.
2021 to 2025
$318,192
1,176 payments
| 2021 | $29,251 |
| 2022 | $65,330 |
| 2023 | $79,437 |
| 2024 | $60,679 |
| 2025 | $83,494 |
Top payers
- Amgen Inc.$261,048
- Lilly USA, LLC$28,139
- Esperion Therapeutics, Inc.$12,009
- Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC$6,241
- Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.$2,830
Payment types
- Compensation for services other than consulting, including serving as faculty or as a speaker at a venue other than a continuing education program$267,186
- Travel and Lodging$20,946
- Food and Beverage$15,676
- Consulting Fee$14,253
- Education$131
A word of caution about these numbers
A payment does not mean your doctor is compromised or acting unethically. Most of these entries are drug samples left for patients, or lunch brought in for the office staff, and the amounts are usually small. Research funding and speaking at medical meetings are also normal parts of a clinical career.
As a rough guide, a total under $15,000 a year is usually not a concern. Much larger sums, especially from one company whose product your doctor recommends to you, are worth asking about. You are allowed to ask.
Sources: summitmedical.com · doximity.com · healthgrades.com · doctor.webmd.com · com.utmck.edu · lipid.org · x.com · linkedin.com. Something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we will correct it.
Summary prepared with AI assistance from the public sources linked above. It is not a review, a rating, or an endorsement.
Practice location
Internal Med Assoc. of McMinn County
301 Grady Road
Etowah, TN 37331
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