New plan could prevent 1000 heart attacks and strokes in Wales
Identifying and treating up to 70,000 more people in Wales who have high blood pressure will prevent more than 1,000 heart attacks and strokes and save nearly £18m for the NHS and social care sector in Wales over three years.
That is according to a new plan from Public Health Wales and its partners, which looks at the impact that preventing cardiovascular disease will have on both individuals and families, as well as the NHS budget.
The plan, ‘Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Plan for Wales: An ABCD Plus Approach’, uses modelling data to demonstrate the benefits of supporting as many people as possible with their cardiovascular risk factors. These include managing blood pressure and cholesterol, diabetes risk, weight, and stopping smoking where needed.
The modelling shows that if around 17,000 patients brought their blood pressure under control, then 102 heart attacks and 152 strokes would be prevented. If around 70,000 more patients had their blood pressure controlled, then 419 heart attacks and 626 strokes could be avoided.
Cardiovascular disease describes a range of conditions which affect the heart and blood vessels, and can lead to serious consequences like heart attacks and strokes. It causes 27 per cent of all deaths in Wales, as well as long-term disability, and costs the NHS in Wales £770 million a year.
CVD is also one of the largest contributors to health inequalities in Wales, with people in the most deprived areas more likely to have risk factors such as high blood pressure, and therefore more likely to experience a heart attack or stroke.
Dr Amrita Jesurasa, Consultant in Public Health for Public Health Wales, said:
“Our new prevention plan puts the person at the centre of their care, recognising that people are likely to have more than one cardiovascular risk. For example, if someone has high blood pressure, healthcare providers need to be able to take every opportunity to also manage the person’s cholesterol, their risk of developing diabetes, their weight, and support them to stop smoking as needed.
“In addition, it will reduce the financial burden of heart attacks and strokes – CVD costs the overall Welsh economy up to £1.6billion every year in premature death, disability, and long-term care, so it’s in everyone’s interest to do everything we can to help people to live longer, healthier lives and reduce these costs to the economy.
“By preventing CVD we will also make big strides in reducing health inequalities in Wales as well, as the prevalence of CVD is significantly higher in the most deprived areas, and causes more severe outcomes including hospitalisations and fatalities.
“It’s an opportunity that can’t be missed.”
Dr Jonathan Goodfellow, National Clinical Lead, Wales Cardiovascular Disease Network, said:
“Wales faces a significant health challenge, the growing burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD), which particularly affects the most deprived communities and drives health inequalities.
“A focus on prevention is urgently needed, targeting the most deprived populations and those most at risk of CVD, to improve quality of life and reduce the burden of CVD disease on our NHS.
“The development of the CVD Prevention Plan for Wales is a product of collaboration between partners across NHS Wales and the third sector, and it will enable us to address this challenge together.”
Further information on cardiovascular disease can be found via:
NHS: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/cardiovascular-disease/
British Heart Foundation: https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/conditions/cardiovascular-disease
Diabetes UK: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/about-diabetes/looking-after-diabetes/complications/cardiovascular-disease
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