Substantial and Unexpected Gains in the Fight Against Heart Disease

Wow!  Let me say that again.  Wow!  Actually, the scientists are using terms like “jaw-dropping,” not thought to be possible,” and a more staid “remarkable.”  Those are the reactions to a new study published in the journal Circulation  which documents the following data on 34 million Americans covered by Medicare between 1999 and 2011:

  • 38% fewer hospitalizations for heart attack
  • 85% decrease in unstable angina (chest pain indicating heart attack)
  • 20% decrease in the risk of death after hospitalization for unstable angina
  • 13% decrease in the risk of death after hospitalization for stroke and heart failure

So, just as I thought we were on an irreversible decline in cardiac health do to rising obesity, poor diet, and lack of exercise, maybe we have finally rounded the corner.  Maybe we are finally taking better care of ourselves and our hearts.  After all, no significant breakthroughs occurred in cardiac medicine during this time and these numbers can’t be entirely related to improved quality of care.  (If they were, we would have seen a corresponding drop in cardiac related medical malpractice claims where payment was made, and we haven’t.)

That’s not to say we don’t have a long way to go.  We do.  Heart disease is still the leading cause of death in the United States.  But we should be encouraged that lifestyle changes can lead to a healthier, and hopefully happier and more productive population.  I am also encouraged by the possibility that we can begin, or already have begin, to correct many of the other depressing problems we hear about every day that make it seem our country is in decline.

Wow!

 

 

 

 

 

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