Cardiovascular disease CVD
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Cardiovascular disease (CVD)
In Australia, cardiovascular disease kills more people than any other disease and creates enormous costs for the health care system. As the average life expectancy of Australians increases, cardiovascular disease is expected to become more common. Cardiovascular disease remains the major public health problem for Australia.
It caused over 51,000 deaths, or 40% of all deaths in Australia in 1998.
This means that one Australian dies every 10 minutes from cardiovascular disease. Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples die from cardiovascular disease at twice the rate of other Australians and have one of the highest rates of rheumatic heart disease in the world, the ratio is about six to nine times higher for males and females respectively, with the greatest difference occurring in the younger age groups. People in lower socio-economic groups are more likely to die from cardiovascular disease compared with people in higher socio-economic groups.
The main underlying problem in cardiovascular disease is atherosclerosis, a process that clogs blood-supply vessels with deposits of fat, cholesterol and other substances. It is most serious when it affects the blood supply to the heart, causing angina or heart attack, or to the brain, which can lead to a stroke. Coronary heart disease (mainly heart attacks) was the leading cardiovascular cause of death, accounting for 29,051 deaths (23% of all deaths) in Australia in 1997...