Who Gets Sick? Exploring Social Epidemiology

Who Gets Sick? Exploring Social Epidemiology

Introduction

Heart disease is one of the major causes of morbidity and death in the United States. Cardiovascular disease (CVD), including stroke, claims more lives than cancer, chronic lower respiratory disease, and accidents combined. More than 1 in 3 adults in the United States have one or more types of CVD, together with hypertension, heart failure, coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke. Estimated lifetime risk of CVD at age 40 is approximately 2 in 3 for men and more than 1 in 2 for women. This entry examines the scope of CVD, its non-modifiable and modifiable risk factors, and lifestyle strategies for primary and secondary prevention (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2008).

Discussion

Scope of Cardiovascular Disease

CVD encompasses disorders and diseases that involve the heart and blood vessels. These include atherosclerosis; CHD and its acute manifestations that is namely, angina pectoris (chest pain) and myocardial infarction (heart attack); cerebrovascular disease and its acute manifestation that is namely, stroke; heart failure; arrhythmias; peripheral arterial disease; hypertension; and other disorders related to genetics (congenital heart disease) or infection (e.g., rheumatic fever). Although cardiovascular disease is an umbrella term, it is often used, particularly in consumer media, to refer primarily to disorders that affect the heart and coronary arteries and to stroke (Libard, 2010). These disorders account for the majority of CVDs. CVD affects all adult populations in the United States. It is the foremost reason of disability and death for both women and men of all ethnic or racial groups.

Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease

This risk for and occurrence of CVD is associated with a number of risk factors, which are behaviors and/or conditions that directly contribute to the physical development of chronic heart disease. Primary risk factors for CVD have been identified through long-term studies of large, representative groups of people (epidemiological studies) that have followed many aspects of lifestyle and health and found factors associated with greater incidence of heart disease. These observed risk factors have also been studied in clinical and laboratory settings to identify the mechanisms by which individual risk factors may contribute to CVD. Major non-adaptable risk aspects include older age, male gender and family account of premature heart disease. Modifiable risk factors include hypertension, dyslipidemia (factors related to cholesterol in the blood), inactivity, smoking, overweight and obesity, type 2 diabetes, and stress. Although research has produced an in-depth understanding of many aspects of ...