Prevalence

An estimated 80,700,000 American adults (one in three) have one or more types of cardiovascular disease (CVD), of whom 38,200,000 are estimated to be age 60 or older. Except as noted, the estimates were extrapolated to the U.S. population in 2005 from NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey1999–2004.

(Total CVD includes diseases in the bullet points below except for congenital CVD.) Due to overlap, it is not possible to add these conditions to arrive at a total. • High blood pressure (HBP)—73,000,000. (Defined as systolic pressure of 140 mm Hg or greater and/or diastolic pressure of 90 mm Hg or greater, taking antihypertensive medication or being told at least twice by a physician or other health professional that you have high blood pressure.)

• Coronary heart disease (CHD)—16,000,000.

• Myocardial infarction (MI, or heart attack)— 8,100,000.

• Angina pectoris (AP, or chest pain)—9,100,000.

• Heart failure (HF)—5,300,000.

• Stroke—5,800,000.

• Congenital cardiovascular defects—650,000– 1,300,000.

• The following prevalence estimates are for people age 18 and older from NCHS/NHIS, 2005:

(Vital Health Stat 10.2006[232]:1–153)

– Among whites only, 12.0 percent have heart disease, 6.6 percent have CHD, 21.0 percent

have hypertension and 2.3 percent have had a stroke.

– Among blacks, 10.2 percent have heart disease, 6.2 percent have CHD, 31.2 percent have

hypertension and 3.4 percent have had a stroke.

– Among Hispanics or Latinos, 8.3 percent have heart disease, 5.9 percent have CHD, 20.3

percent have hypertension and 2.2 percent have had a stroke.

– Among Asians, 6.7 percent have heart disease, 3.8 percent have CHD, 19.4 percent have

hypertension and 2.0 percent have had a stroke.

– Among Native Hawaiians or other Pacific

Islanders, 22.4 percent have hypertension (other prevalence estimates considered unreliable).

– Among American Indians or Alaska Natives, 13.0 percent have heart disease, 2.5 percent have

CHD, 25.5 percent have hypertension and 5.8 percent have had a stroke (estimate for HD may

be unreliable).

Incidence

• Based on the NHLBI’s (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) Framingham Heart Study (FHS) (1980–2003)… (Hurst W. The Heart, Arteries and Veins.10th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 2002)

– The average annual rates of first major cardiovascular events rise from three per 1,000 men at ages 35–44 to 74 per 1,000 at ages 85–94. For women, comparable rates occur 10 years later in life. The gap narrows with advancing age.

– Before age 75, a higher proportion of CVD events due to CHD occur in men than in women, and a higher proportion of events due to stoke occur in women than in men.

• Data from the FHS (Framingham Heart Study) indicate that the lifetime risk for CVD is two in three for men and more than one in two for women at age 40.

(Personal communication, Donald Lloyd-Jones, MD, Northwestern University, Chicago, Ill.)

Mortality

• Final mortality data show that CVD (I00–I99, Q20–Q28) as the underlying cause of death

(including congenital cardiovascular defects) accounted for 36.3 percent (869,724) of all

2,397,615 deaths in 2004, or one of every 2.8 deaths in the United States. CVD total mention deaths (1,357,000 deaths in 2004) accounted for about 57 percent of all deaths in 2004.

(NCHS, National Center for Health Statistics Compressed mortality file: underlying cause of death,1979 to 2004; http://wonder.cdc.gov/mortSQL.html)

• In every year since 1900, except 1918, CVD accounted for more deaths than any other single cause or group of causes of death in the United States.

• Nearly 2,400 Americans die of CVD each day, an average of one death every 37 seconds.CVD claims about as many lives each year as cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents and diabetes mellitus combined.

• The 2004 overall death rate from CVD (I00–I99) was 288.0. The rates were 335.1 for white males and 454.0 for black males; 238.0 for white females and 333.6 for black females. From 1994–2004, death rates from CVD (ICD/10 I00– I99) declined 24.7 percent. In the same 10-year period, actual CVD deaths declined 8 percent.

• Other causes of death in 2004 (based on final mortality figures)—cancer, 553,888; accidents, 112,012; Alzheimer’s disease, 65,965; HIV (AIDS), 13,063

• Final 2004 CVD death rates were 341.7 for males and 245.3 for females. Cancer (malignant neoplasms) death rates were 227.7 for males and 157.4 for females. Breast cancer claimed the lives of 40,954 females in 2004; lung cancer claimed 68,461. Death rates for females were 24.4 for breast cancer and 41.6 for lung cancer.

One in 30 female deaths is from breast cancer, while one in six is from CHD. By comparison, one in 4.6 women die of cancer while one in 2.6 die of CVD. Based on 2004 mortality, CVD caused about a death a minute among females —more than 460,000 female lives in 2004. That’s more female lives than were claimed by cancer,

chronic lower respiratory diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, accidents and diabetes combined.

• More than 148,000 Americans killed by CVD (I00–I99) in 2004 were under age 65. In 2004, 32 percent of deaths from CVD occurred prematurely (i.e., before age 75, which is well below the average life expectancy of 77.9 years).

• According to the NCHS (National Center for Health Statistics), if all forms of major CVD were eliminated, life expectancy would rise by almost seven years. If all forms of cancer were eliminated, the gain would be three years. (U.S. Decennial Life Tables for 1989–91, Volume 1, No.4. Eliminating Certain Causes of Death, 1989–91. NCHS,September 1999.)

Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics — 2008 Update, American Heart Association

Cigarette smoking remains the leading preventable cause of Coronary Heart Disease. It's the inhalation and exhalation of fumes of burning tobacco chemicals through the lungs to our blood stream. As our body absorbs these chemicals, it circulates throughout our body, affecting every cell and tissue. Smoking might be addictive, but is it worth it after all?

These chemical known as Nicotine causes the blood cell called platelets to become stickier, thereby increasing the chances of blood clot or thrombosis formation in the blood vessels. About 50 million people in the United States smoke an estimated 450 billion cigarette each year. Whoa! what a number.

The amount of cigarette smoked is reflected in the risk. The more you smoke, the greater the risk of angina (chest pain) or heart attack. For women that smoke about 30 or more cigarette per day, it’s a six-fold increase in risk for heart disease. About half a million people in the United States die each year from illness caused by cigarette smoking. Alarming isn't it.

Nicotine as we know causes arteries to constrict, lowering skin temperature and reducing blood flow to the lower part of the body thereby forcing the heart to pump more blood through the body.
Nicotine and carbon monoxide in tobacco team together to damage the lining of the arteries and other blood vessels, making platelets stickier. So for this reason, one third of smoking related deaths are caused by CHD.

Studies have shown that cigarette smoking are addictive because of the nicotine in them. Also an unknown substance in tobacco appears to destroy an important brain enzyme called monoamine oxidase B responsible for breaking down excess amount of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that triggers pressure-seeking behavior like smoking and drinking.

According to World Health Organization (WHO), smokers who quit smoking before the age of 50 reduce their risk of life threatening diseases like CHD by half. Nevertheless, quitting is always difficult as the crave of the effect of nicotine is unbearable.
But there are many books and products that helps, support groups are also available in your local areas. There are number of nicotine replacement products like nicotine patches, nicotine gum, nicotine nasal spray, nicotine inhaler, anti-depressant and many more in the pharmaceutical stores.

To learn more about smoking and heart diseases Call 1-800-AHA-USA1 (1-800-242-8721) or visit http://www.americanheart.org

Knowledge is power, so Learn and Live!

Do you know that CORONARY HEART DISEASE is the most common type of heart disease in developed and industrialized countries? Have you heard that CHD is responsible for over half a million death in the United States and more than 150,000 death in the U.K. alone yearly? What is this Coronary Heart Disease all about anyway? Let’s get to know CHD and what causes it.

Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) is simply the disease of the coronary artery, a situation whereby the artery that supply blood to the heart is clogged or blocked, reducing blood flow to the heart muscles which need oxygen from the blood supply and this could lead to a complete artery blockage . When this happens in the heart, the result is heart attack medically known as myocardial infarction. The same process in blood vessels supplying the brain results in a stroke.
Coronary Heart Disease is caused mainly by:
-formation of plagues (fatty deposits) in the lining of the and,
-rupture of this plagues and a subsequent development of a blood clot known as thrombosis in the artery.
These plagues narrow the arteries so that less blood flows through them thereby depriving the heart muscles of the much needed oxygen. If blood supply is not restored, there will be a permanent damage to the heart.

Because of our western lifestyle especially in dieting, the health of arteries gradually deteriorates as we grow older. Fats and cholesterol is the major cloggier of the arteries. The fatty deposits (plagues) in the artery are medically called atheroma and the whole process is known as atherosclerosis.
The more the fatty deposits (plagues), the greater the risk of heart attacks. Women should beware because a woman's heart is smaller and has narrower coronary arteries than a man's, so it takes less plague to block them.
Plague rupture and thrombosis leads to a complete blockage of an artery. When these plagues break, it releases a complex chemical which triggers a lot of events leading to thrombosis.

The most common symptom of CHD is Angina Pectoris (chest pain). Angina occurs as a result of restriction of blood flow to the heart due to plague formation in the coronary arteries. The pain is described as a crushing or gripping pain across the chest which may also radiate into the teeth or throat and followed by sweating and breathlessness.
The pain arises from the muscle fiber of the heart that has insufficient supply of oxygen. The harder the heart muscles works, the more the oxygen will be required and the greater the imbalance between the oxygen supply and demand. This is why Angina is typically triggered by physical activities. It can also occur after stress and anxiety.

Heart attack (myocardial infarction) occurs when the degree of narrowing of the coronary is high or if there has been a blood clot (thrombosis) which blocks the arteries. It is important to know that heart attack can occur anytime, anywhere without warning. These are the warning symptoms of heart attack.

- Chest discomfort
- sweating
- Dizziness or nausea
- Fatigue, palpitation
- Fainting, breathlessness. Not all these symptoms occur in every attack

CHD and stroke are two most common form of cardiovascular disease. They account for about 75% of all the deaths relating to heart diseases.

To learn more about Coronary heart diseases Call 1-800-AHA-USA1 (1-800-242-8721) or visit http://www.americanheart.org

Knowledge is power, so Learn and Live!