Heart Disease Deaths Fall By a Third

By HELEN PUTTICK HEALTH CORRESPONDENT

DEATHS from heart disease in Scotland have dropped by almost a third in a decade, new figures revealed yesterday.

Nearly 10,778 people lost their lives to the condition last year, compared with 15,000 in 1995. Official statistics show fewer people are also suffering and dying from strokes.

Advances in the diagnosis, management and treatment of people at risk from clogged arteries is behind the trend.

Andy Kerr, health minister, said it was excellent news that fewer Scots were experiencing and dying from the two illnesses. Health charities also welcomed the decreases, although they warned Scotland’s health record still compared poorly with other parts of the UK.

Coronary heart disease occurs when there is a build-up of fatty deposits of cholesterol and waste substances in the walls of the arteries. A healthy diet helps cut down cholesterol, and cutting out smoking helps because the habit hardens the arteries, causing them to narrow.

Cholesterol-lowering drugs, such as statins, are nowwidely used to reduce the risk of disease in people with high cholesterol.

Deaths from heart disease and strokes have been falling steadily since 1995, along with incidence of the two conditions. The new figures showed a continuation of these trends last year.

Deaths from coronary heart disease fell by 7.3percent between 2003 and 2004, from 150.4 deaths per 100,000 people to 139.4. There was also a 6.2percent fall over the same 12-month period in the death rate from strokes, from 79.1 per 100,000 to 74.2.

NHS Scotland’s Information and Statistics Division, which published the data, said the Scottish Executive was on course to meet its targets to cut the death toll from heart disease by 60percent and strokes by 50percent among under-75s by 2010.

Mr Kerr said he intended to ensure the goals were met, and added that more needed to be done to help people in deprived areas improve their health.