March 28, 2024

Is cardiovascular disease more preventable than we think?

According to a new report from the Cdc and Prevention (CDC), nearly a quarter of heart disease deaths could be prevented with increased prevention efforts and better treatment.

In 2010, the CDC found that as many as 200,000 of the 800,000 deaths from cardiovascular disease could have been avoided by just managing conditions better like hypertension, high cholesterol levels, obesity and smoking. Cardiovascular disease is responsible for 30 % of U.S. deaths each year, making it the key reason for death, based on the CDC.

The report checked out preventable deaths from heart disease and stroke, defined as those that occurred in people under age 75 that could happen to be prevented by more effective public health measures, changes in lifestyle or health care. The CDC has long tracked deaths from heart disease, but nothing you’ve seen prior issued a report how many deaths might have been prevented.

In 2010, more than half of the preventable deaths were in those younger than 65. The overall rate of preventable deaths fell by almost 30 percent between 2001 and 2010, using the biggest drop in those aged 65-74, an organization entitled to Medicare, said Dr. Tom Frieden, CDC director, in a news release.

CDC officials said that the launch of important elements from the 2014 Affordable Care Act may help reduce avoidable deaths. The law requires improved access to treatment for countless uninsured Americans and routine coverage for preventive screenings.

The CDC also reported the following key findings:

  • Men were more than two times as likely as women to die from heart disease and strokes that may have been prevented. The rate of such deaths for U.S. men in 2010 was 83.7 per 100,000 in 2010 in contrast to 39.6 per 100,000 for ladies.
  • Blacks were twice as likely as whites to die from preventable cardiovascular disease and strokes.
  • In 2010, america using the highest avoidable death rates were Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Louisiana. The states with the lowest rates were Minnesota, Utah, Colorado, Connecticut and New Hampshire.

“This report drives home what we should already know: That encouraging healthy behaviors at every patient visit is essential,” says Dr. Jennifer DeBruler, internal medicine physician with Advocate Medical Group in Libertyville, Ill. “That includes not smoking, being more active and eating healthfully.”

“Despite progress against cardiovascular disease and stroke, hundreds of thousands of Americans die every year from all of these preventable causes of death,” said Frieden in a press briefing. “Many of the cardiac arrest and strokes that will kill individuals next season could be prevented by reducing blood pressure and cholesterol and giving up smoking.”