Cardiovascular Disease Facts & Statistics

Heart Disease and Stroke Facts in the US from American Heart Association and American Stroke Association.

Annual Incidence

Condition Total in US/year Males/year Females/year
Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) 80,700,000
(over 1 in 3 adults)
37,900,000 42,700,000
CVD Deaths 869,800 410,700 459,100
Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) Events 1,200,000 710,000 490,000
CHD Deaths 608,100 316,400 291,700
Myocardial infarctions (MI) Events
(subset of CHD)
920,00 555,000 365,000
MI Deaths 156,800 82,900 73,900
Stroke Events 780,000 360,000 420,000
Stroke Deaths 150,100 58,800 91,300

Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)Facts

Cardiovascular Disease refers to the class of disease that involves the heart or blood vessels.

Data from the Framingham Heart Study (FHS) indicate that lifetime risk for CVD is 2 in 3 for men and more than 1 in 2 for women over age 40.

The estimated direct and indirect cost for CVD in the United States for is $448.5 billion.

CVD kills one person every 37 seconds in the United States.

CVD is responsible for 1 out of every 3 deaths in the United States.

One in six women dies from CVD, one in 30 women die from breast cancer.

Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) Facts

Coronary Heart Disease is a narrowing or occlusion of the small blood vessels that supply blood and oxygen to the heart.

CHD causes 1 of every 5 deaths in the US, and is the single leading cause of death for both men and women.

An estimated 770,000 people will have new coronary attacks this year, 430,000 individuals will have recurrent events.

About every 26 seconds, an American will suffer a coronary event, and about every minute someone will die from one.

68% of heart attacks are from plaque rupture and thrombus not stenosis.

Stroke Facts

Stroke is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to occlusion or other disturbance in the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain.

On average, every 40 seconds someone in the United States has a stroke.

On average, every 3 to 4 minutes someone dies of a stroke.

Stroke is the #3 cause of death.

Of all strokes, 87% are ischemic.

Stroke is the leading cause of serious, long term disability in the United States. 30-50% of Stroke survivors suffer permanent disablity.

Stroke accounts for 1 in 16 deaths.

The risk of ischemic stroke in smokers is about double that of nonsmokers.

Cholesterol has little to no correlation with stroke risk.

About 15 % of strokes are preceded by a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA)

The mean lifetime cost of ischemic stroke in the United States is estimated at $140,048 for each individual. This includes inpatient care, rehab and follow-up care. It does not include lost wages/productivity.

An analysis published in the Journal of Neurology estimates that direct and indirect costs for strokes in the United States will run more than $2.2 trillion from 2005 to 2050. Highest cost is lost earnings and quality of life.

The majority of ischemic strokes are due to plaque rupture and thrombosis, not stenosis*

The PLAC Test is the only blood test cleared by the FDA to aid in assessing risk for both coronary heart disease (CHD) and ischemic stroke associated with atherosclerosis.

 

* reference data on file at diaDexus