Uttaranchal (P.G.) College of Bio-Medical Sciences & Hospital, Dehradun

Breaking Down the Numbers: The Alarming Statistics of Cardiovascular Disease

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death globally. The incidence is increasing day by day, also in developing countries, in which coronary artery disease, hypertension, and stroke account for 80% of cardiovascular deaths in males and 75% among females. Approximately 18.1% million people died from cardiovascular diseases in 2020, representing 42% of global deaths. Of these,85% of deaths were due to heart attack, sudden cardiac death, and stroke, and over three-quarters of cardiovascular deaths take place in low- and middle-income countries.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a group of diseases that involve the heart and blood vessels. These include coronary artery diseases such as angina and myocardial infection; others include stroke, heart failure, hypertensive heart disease, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathy, abnormal heart rhythms, valvular heart disease, carditis, aortic aneurysms, peripheral artery disease, thromboembolic disease and venous thrombosis.

The incidence of heart disease among young adults is increasing mainly due to tobacco consumption, lack of physical activity, sedentary lifestyle, and obesity. Modifiable risk factors among adults, like smoking, obesity, tobacco chewing, etc., and their passive nature of work factors highlighted that there is inadequate knowledge about rising non-communicable diseases like CAD, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus and their prevention among older adults. As the proverb “Prevention is better than cure”. The process of disease prevention must be aimed at not only understanding the disease mechanism but also identifying the risk factors and establishing interventions such as lifestyle changes or strategies in the early stages of life that definitively reduce the risk of heart disease. It is estimated that up to 90% of cardiovascular disease (CVDs) may be preventable by Identifying those at the highest risk of CVDs and ensuring they receive appropriate lifestyle modification and treatment that can prevent premature deaths by modification of modifiable factors like weight, diet, and physical activity. However, lifestyle modification can also be helpful in this regard, providing independent and additive benefits to the associated reductions in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Lifestyle and health education programs are multidisciplinary, with self-care components tailored to individual risk factors.

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