Health Ministries

I'd like to look at something that is quite common in us older folk. The heading of an article in my Health News from Duke Medicine said " Millions Are Not Getting Optimal Treatment for Heart Failure". It then went on to say "If they were, thousands more patients might be saved.". An estimated 5.8 million adults in the United States suffer from heart failure, a condition in which the weakened heart cannot pump strongly enough to meet the body's needs. Heart failure sufferers experience a declining quality of life and high rates of hospitalization. Ultimately, 283,000 die from the condition every year.

 

Although six treatments have been proven to reduce heart failure deaths, a disturbing report in the recent issue of the American Heart Journal found that many patients who qualify for these potentially lifesaving treatments never receive them. Although the authors did not investigate the reasons why, they did not investigate the reasons why, they did determine that a staggering number of deaths might be prevented every year if doctors did a better job of practicing evidence -based medicine.

 

The researchers explained that the largest potential benefits would be gained by more widespread use of therapies with the largest treatment gap and magnitude of benefits. MORE THAN SAVING LIVES. Although the study focused on preventing deaths from heart failure, the authors emphasized that many of these therapies also reduce hospitalizations, decrease symptoms and improve quality of life. These sound pretty helpful and wonderful, don't they? I think I'd like to try to help us find out a little more about how other things that we do can also influence the risk of heart disease.