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Three main groups of clinical
conditions come under this heading
- Coronary Heart Disease - This includes
heart attacks, acute coronary syndromes and angina.
- Cerebrovascular Diseases - Strokes, mini strokes also
known as Transient Ischaemic Attacks (TIA's).
- Peripheral Arterial Disease -
Narrowing of the leg arteries resulting in pain in the calves
called claudication.
Scotland remains one of the world leaders in the
league table of premature deaths from cardiovascular disease, with Northern Ireland and the north of England
not far behind.
Coronary heart disease, the
leading single cause of death in the UK, claims about 150,000
lives every year. This is everyone's disease 90% of all Scots will have
some degree of atheroma, which is the
underlying pathological condition.
One man in three and one woman in
four will have signs of heart disease before they retire. Over a third
of all deaths in Scotland are due to heart attack, and ten per cent are
due to stroke while other vascular disease being the total to more than
half of all deaths.
To find out more about the causes
of cardiovascular disease, usually known as risk factors, and what can
be done to reduce the risk and possibly prevent these diseases click on
the 'Am I at Risk?' and 'Prevention'
sections.
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