The latest Vital Signs report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is a heart-stopper.
The CDC reported that heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and other related conditions in the U.S. caused 2.2 million hospitalizations in 2016, resulting in $32.7 billion in costs and 415,000 deaths, despite being largely preventable.
Many of these events were in adults ages 35-64, with over 775,000 hospitalizations and 75,000 deaths occurring within this group in 2016
“Most of these events can be prevented through daily actions to help lower risk and better manage medical conditions,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the CDC.
She said that the “staggering number of cardiovascular deaths and hospitalizations” arise from opportunities missed every day in finding and treating the common, controllable causes of cardiovascular diseases.
The CDC reported that 9 million American adults are not yet taking aspirin as recommended, 40 million adults with high blood pressure are not yet under safe control, 39 million adults can benefit from managing their cholesterol, 54 million adults are smokers, and 71 million adults are not physically active.
According to the CDC, if every state reduced these life-changing events by six percent, one million cardiac events could be prevented by 2022 – hence the name of a collaborative initiative called “Million Hearts.”
“The solution for this national crisis does not depend on a brilliant new discovery or a breakthrough in science,” said Janet Wright, M.D., a board certified cardiologist and executive director of Million Hearts “Small changes – the right changes, sustained over time – can produce huge improvements in cardiovascular health.”
Wright urged healthcare professionals and healthcare systems to focus on the ABCS of heart health – Aspirin use when appropriate, Blood pressure control, Cholesterol management, and Smoking cessation – and to promote physical activity and healthy eating among their patients and employees.
For more information, visit www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns.
