Extract
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The prevalence and incidence of cardiovascular disease are known to vary among different countries,1 most probably depending on income, culture, and healthcare systems, but precise data have been lacking so far. The novel ‘European Society of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Disease Statistics 2017’2 by the Atlas Writing Group compiled cardiovascular disease statistics of the 56 ESC member countries and compared high-income and middle-income ESC member states. Important differences were identified between high-income and middle-income ESC member countries with regard to cardiovascular disease risk factors, disease incidence, and mortality. For instance, the prevalence of hypertension was lower in high-income than in middle-income countries, as was smoking. These inequalities are likely to have contributed to the higher cardiovascular mortality in middle-income countries. Declines in cardiovascular disease mortality have seen cancer becoming a more common cause of death in a number of high-income member countries, but in middle-income countries declines in cardiovascular disease mortality have been less consistent. The downward cardiovascular mortality trends may be threatened by the emerging obesity epidemic. Rates of cardiac catheterization and coronary artery bypass surgery, and the number of specialist centres were greatest in high-income countries, and this was associated with the most pronounced declines in coronary mortality. Unless countermesurers are launched, the availability of such data will underpin the ESC’s mission ‘to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease.
