Cardiovascular disease, world incidence

Coronary heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the industrialized world (Packer, 1992 Remme and Swedberg, 2001). Hypertension is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and is associated with an increased incidence of stroke and coronary heart disease. Other risk factors for cardiovascular disease include also high cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. Although there have been many advances in treatment over the past several decades, less than a quarter of all hypertensive patients have their blood pressure adequately controlled with available therapies. 

Tunstall-Pedoe H, Kuulasmaa K, Amouyel P et al. (1994). Myocardial infarction and coronary deaths in the World Health Organization MONICA Project. Registration procedures, event rates and case-fatality rates in 38 populations from 21 countries in four continents. Circulation 90 583-612 Wald NJ, Law MR (2003). A strategy to reduce cardiovascular disease by more than 80%. British Medical Journal 326 1419 White H, Boden-Albala B, Wang C et al. (2005). Ischemic stroke subtype incidence among whites, blacks and Hispanics the Northern Manhattan Study. Circulation 111 1327-1331 Wityk RJ, Pessin MS, Kaplan RF et al. (1994). Serial assessment of acute stroke using the NIH Stroke Scale. Stroke 25 362-365. 

Cancer is a major cause of death throughout the world, and in the developed world, it is generally exceeded only by cardiovascular disease. Cancer of the large bowel, which is the fourth most common cancer in the world, is one of the leading causes of cancer death in both men and women in Western countries, including the U.S. where about 150,000 new cases of this cancer and about 56,000 related deaths were estimated in 2002. Marked international differences in the incidence and mortality of colon cancer and increase of risk in populations migrating from low- to high-risk... 

The World Health Statistics Annual (WHO, 1978) indicates a distinct geographical distribution of cardiovascular disease incidence, with Sweden, Scotland, Denmark, USA, England and Wales, Ireland, Finland, Austria, Norway and Australia being the top ten and with Costa Rica, Japan, Hong Kong, Phillipines, Mexico, Equador, Dominican Republic, Martinique, Honduras and Thailand being the bottom ten, in their incidence rates of atherosclerosis-related deaths, out of the 48 countries listed. 

Amir O, Hassan Y, Sarriff A, Awaisu A, Aziz NA, Ismail O. Incidence of risk factors for developing hyperkalaemia when using ACE inhibitors in cardiovascular diseases. Pharm World Sci 2009 31 387-93. 

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