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Cardiovascular disease death rate drops
Posted
8-16-99 Atlanta. The anticipated death rate among those diagnosed with cardiovascular disease has dropped 60 percent over the last five decades, according to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The decline is "one of the most important health achievements of the 20th century," according to the CDC. The organization attributes the decline to an overall decrease in smoking, a drop in mean blood pressure, dietary changes, and effective medications for the treatment of hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. While the American Heart Association does not question the data used by the CDC, the Dallas-based organization does question the formulas the CDC has used to calculate trends. "By looking only at death rates, we may miss the bigger picture, which is that the actual number of individuals dying from heart disease and stroke has gone up," said Lynn Smaha, MD, PhD, president of the American Heart Association. The association predicts that serious problems caused by cardiovascular disease are going to get worse, not better, in an aging population. While the percentage of heart-disease patients who die may have gone down, the actual number of deaths has gone up, Smaha said. By the American Heart Association's estimates, 200,000 people die each year due to coronary disease or stroke. In actual numbers, that indicates an increase of 37 percent, Smaha said. While the American Heart Association may not agree on the trends, both organizations agree on the need to address the long-term challenges of cardiovascular disease, said CDC spokesperson Mike Greenwell. "We agree that the absolute number of people with heart disease continues to go up and that the fight against heart disease and stroke must continue," Greenwell said. "We've acknowledged that with the development of a cardiovascular disease prevention program in every state." Denise Fitzgerald, MSN, NP, RN, president of the Society for Vascular Nursing, agrees with Smaha's assessment. Fitzgerald, who works at the University of Rochester in Rochester General Hospital in Rochester, N.Y., says she's seen an increase in the number of patients and the severity of the disease. "We used to see patients in their 70s," Fitzgerald said. "Now we're seeing them in their 30s and 40s. The patients are getting younger."
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