New figures reveal changing patterns of stroke and heart disease related deaths in Europe
5 February 2008New figures show there are still large variations between and within European countries in the numbers of stroke and heart disease-related deaths. Several countries, particularly in northern and eastern Europe, have rates of death that are as much as 7-14 times higher than other countries, while countries such as Poland, Spain, Portugal, Germany and the UK have large regional variations. Published in Europe’s leading cardiology journal, the European Heart Journal today, the study looked at deaths from ischaemic heart disease (IHD) – a form of heart disease characterised by a reduced blood supply to the heart – and cerebrovascular disease (CVD) – defects in the blood vessels supplying the brain which can result in events such as stroke – for the year 2000.
From the paper An update on regional variation in cardiovascular mortality within Europe Jacqueline Müller-Nordhorn, Sylvia Binting, Stephanie Roll and Stefan N. WillichPublished in European Heart Journal, Advanced Access, February 5th 2008
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