More Missourians face risk of heart disease, survey says

According to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, nearly 25,000 Missourians die from heart disease and stroke every year and a recent report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that that number could be on the rise.

The number of Missourians at risk for suffering heart attacks or stroke climbed from 60 percent in 1991 to almost 67 percent in 2001, according to a Feb. 9 news release from the Missouri DHSS.

The CDC derived the increased percentage figures on risk factors by analyzing data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which is the world's largest self-reporting telephone survey conducted by each state and analyzed by the CDC.

"Over the past decade, we have seen an increase in the number of individuals with high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, diabetes or obesity, all risk factors for heart disease and stroke," said Michael Dietz, research analyst with the Missouri program. "The study also showed us that the number of individuals who smoked stayed the same.

Nationwide and in Missouri, heart disease and stroke are the first and third cause of death.

The CDC would like for heart attack and stroke prevention to remain public health priorities, and the organization suggests an increase in efforts to prevent, detect and treat patients with known risk factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, smoking and obesity.

The state of Missouri has implemented the Missouri Heart Disease and Stroke Program in schools, at work sites, in health care settings and in the community. According to the release, the program is working to put approximately 400 automatic external defibrillators in rural Missouri areas to decrease pre-hospital deaths from heart attacks.

According to the CDC, the death and disability caused by heart attacks and strokes often come with staggering economic burdens. In 2001, more than $3 billion was spent in Missouri for hospitalizations and emergency visits related to heart disease and stroke.