Thats for a FACT.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the term used for heart, stroke and blood vessel diseases. It is the leading cause of death in Australia, accounting for 34% of all deaths in Australia in 2006. Cardiovascular disease kills one Australian nearly every 10 minutes.
Cardiovascular disease is one of Australia's largest health problems. Despite improvements over the last few decades, it remains one of the biggest burdens on our economy.

Cardiovascular disease:

• is heart, stroke and blood vessel disease
• kills one Australian nearly every 11 minutes
• affects more than 3.4 million Australians
• prevents 1.4 million people from living a full life because of disability caused by the disease
• affects one in five Australians, and affects two out of three families
• claimed the lives of almost 48,500 Australians (34% of all deaths) in 2008 - deaths that are largely preventable.

Facts about Heart Disease in United State

• In 2006, 631,636 people died of heart disease. Heart disease caused 26% of deaths—more than one in every four—in the United States.
• Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. Half of the deaths due to heart disease in 2006 were women. Coronary heart disease is the most common type of heart disease. In 2005, 445,687 people died from coronary heart disease.
• Every 34 seconds a  person in the United States dies from heart disease.
• More than 2,500 Americans die from heart disease each day.
• Every 20 seconds, a person in the United States has a heart attack.
• At least 250,000 people die of heart attacks each year before they reach a hospital.
• Studies show that under-educated people are more likely to suffer heart attacks.
• The countries with the highest death rates from heart disease are the Soviet Union, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. The countries with the lowest are Japan, France, Spain, Switzerland, and Canada.
• Almost 6 million hospitalizations each year (in the United States) are due to cardiovascular disease.
• Since 1900, Cardio Vascular Disease has been the number 1 killer in the United States for every year but 1918.
• Every 33 seconds, a person dies from Cardio Vascular Disease in the United States.
• Men suffer heart attacks about 10 years earlier in life than women do.
• Every year about 785,000 Americans have a first heart attack. Another 470,000 who have already had one or more heart attacks have another attack.
• Across the United States, death rates due to heart disease in 2006 were highest in Mississippi and lowest in Minnesota.
• In 2010, heart disease will cost the United States $316.4 billion. This total includes the cost of health care services, medications, and lost productivity.

Introduction to Cardiovascular Diseases.

About Cardiovascular Disease.

Cardiovascular diseases is the class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels (arteries and veins). While the term technically refers to any disease that affects the cardiovascular disease , it is usually used to refer to those related to atherosclerosis (arterial disease). These conditions have similar causes, mechanisms, and treatments.

In practice, cardiovascular disease is treated by cardiologists, thoracic surgeons, vascular surgeons, neurologists, and interventional radiologists, depending on the organ system that is being treated. There is considerable overlap in the specialties, and it is common for certain procedures to be performed by different types of specialists in the same hospital.

Most countries face high and increasing rates of cardiovascular disease. Each year, heart disease kills more Americans than cancer. In recent years, cardiovascular risk in women has been increasing and has killed more women than breast cancer.^[2] A large histological study (PDAY) showed vascular injury accumulates from adolescence, making primary prevention efforts necessary from childhood.^[3][4]

By the time that heart problems are detected, the underlying cause (atherosclerosis) is usually quite advanced, having progressed for decades. There is therefore increased emphasis on preventing atherosclerosis by modifying risk factors, such as healthy eating, exercise and avoidance of smoking.

Cardiovascular diseases include the following;

• Aneurysm
• Angina
• Atherosclerosis
• Cerebrovascular Accident (Stroke)
• Cerebrovascular disease
• Congestive Heart Failure
• Coronary Artery Disease
• Myocardial infarction (Heart Attack)
• Peripheral vascular disease

Unlike many other chronic medical conditions, Cardiovascular disease is treatable and reversible, even after a long history of disease. Treatment is primarily focused on diet and stress reduction.

Population based studies in the youth show that the precursors of heart disease start in adolescence. The process of atherosclerosis evolves over decades, and begins as early as childhood. The Pathobiological Determinants of Atherosclerosis in Youth Study demonstrated that intimal lesions appear in all the aortas and more than half of the right coronary arteries of youths aged 7–9 years. However, most adolescents are more concerned about other risks such as HIV, accidents, and cancer than cardiovascular disease. This is extremely important considering that 1 in 3 people will die from complications attributable to atherosclerosis. In order to stem the tide of cardiovascular disease, primary prevention is needed. Primary prevention starts with education and awareness that cardiovascular disease poses the greatest threat and measures to prevent or reverse this disease must be taken.

Statistics of Cardiovascular Disease.

Estimates for the year 2006 are that 81,100,000 people in the United States have one or more forms of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

• High blood pressure — 73,600,000.
• Coronary heart disease — 17,600,000.
  • Myocardial infarction (mi"o-KAR'de-al in-FARK'shun) (acute heart attack) — 8,500,000.
  • Angina pectoris (AN'jih-nah or an-JI'nah PEK'tor-is) (chest pain or discomfort caused by reduced blood supply to the heart muscle) — 10,200,000.
• Stroke — 6,400,000.
• Heart Failure — 5,800,000

Cardiovascular diseases

• Claimed 831,272 lives in 2006 (final mortality) (34.3 percent of all deaths or 1 of every 2.9 deaths).
• Other final 2006 mortality: total cancer 559,888; accidents 121,599; HIV (AIDS) 12,113.
• Over 151,000 Americans killed by CVD in 2006 were under age 65.
• 2006 final death rates from CVD were 306.6 for white males and 422.8 for black males; for white females 215.5 and for black females 298.2. (Death rates are per 100,000 population. The rates listed use the year 2000 standard U.S. population as the base for age adjustment.)
• From 1996 to 2006, death rates from CVD declined 29.2 percent.
• In the same 10-year period the actual number of deaths declined 12.9 percent.

Coronary heart disease
Coronary heart disease is caused by atherosclerosis (ath"er-o-skleh-RO'sis), the narrowing of the coronary arteries due to fatty build ups of plaque. It's likely to produce angina pectoris (chest pain), heart attack or both.

• Coronary heart disease caused 425,425 deaths in 2006 and is the single leading cause of death in America today.
• 17,600,000 people alive today have a history of heart attack, angina pectoris or both. This is about 9,200,000 males and 8,400,000 females.
• This year an estimated 1.26 million Americans will have a new or recurrent coronary attack.
• There are about 295,000 EMS-assessed out-of-hospital cardiac arrests annually in the United States.
• From 1996 to 2006 the death rate from coronary heart disease declined 36.4 percent.
• In 2006, coronary heart disease death rates per 100,000 people were 176.3 for white males and 206.4 for black males; and 101.5 for white females and 130.0 for black females. (Death rates are per 100,000 population. The rates use the year 2000 standard population for age adjustment.)

Mortality — The total number of deaths from a given disease in a population during a specific interval of time, usually a year.


Prevalence — The total number of cases of a given disease existing in a population at a specific point in time.

Human and Heart

Many would ask why human and heart? Why not health and heart? Why not health and human? The reason why we chose 'Human and Heart' as our blog link because, we want to create awareness among people about heart. Why not Health and human? We are talking about heart and it covers a wide topic not just about health, its about our important organ. And why not health and human? We think 'Heart and Human' sounds better than health ;] Yeah, it seems to be cliche as it sounds.


Throughout the blog, we are hoping that our blog will motivate people with whatever interests they may have in improving their living conditions. Our aim is to develop in them a sense of responsibility for health conditions for themselves as individuals, as members of families, and as communities. In communicable control, our blog commonly includes an appraisal of what is known by a population about a disease, an assessment of habits and attitudes of the people as they relate to spread and frequency of the disease, and the presentation of specific means to remedy observed deficiencies.
Lets keep our fingers cross that this blog will be an effective tool that helps improve health in developing nations and re-shape everyday habits of people with unhealthy lifestyles in developing countries. People become more aware of information relating to the disease, rather than believing in just public perception. Our blog is not with how to prevent illnesses, it also provides details of how a disease works, which may dispel some myths and fallacies about it in society. The HIV virus for example, can be spread through unprotected sexual intercourse, but not through activities such as kissing or touching. This also helps change a person's views towards someone infected, promoting more empathy rather than discrimination.

Because heart covers a wide topic, we decided to choose Cardiovascular Disease as our main topic on this blog. Why? Because, Cardiovascular Disease or CVD are the world's largest killers, claiming 17.1 million lives a year. Estimates for the year 2006 are that 81,100,000 people in the United States have one or more forms of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Cardiovascular disease is a major worldwide public heart problem. It is the number one cause of death in industrialized countries. The global burden of cardiovascular disease can be seen from the mortality data for coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease for individual countries; the data are available at www.eatlas.idf.org/cvd. However, many take this serious issues lightly and unaware about the disease. We are aware about the situation and would like to take the essential role by giving more information to others.


Although the mind has the ability to absorb much information, until we put that information to use - that information is useless. Even those who have accredited degrees sometimes fail to use knowledge prudently. Our society has doctors who are so over weight they have difficulty in walking; we have ministers who have fallen prey to certain addictions - and so forth. So although health education is important, it's more important to use that knowledge.