To reduce the onset of cardiovascular disease (CVD), it is crucial to identify those persons at high risk of developing CVD, and to provide them with appropriate advice and preventive treatment.
The EHN revised paper ‘Early detection of cardiovascular disease’ focuses on strategies for prevention at an individual level and early identification of so-called high-risk individuals; that is, people who are at high risk of developing or dying from cardiovascular disease.
It builds upon available evidence from several studies and evidence gathered by experts as part of the WHO’s initiative on screening, published in the WHO Health Evidence Network (HEN) report ‘What is the effectiveness of systematic population level screening programmes for reducing the burden of cardiovascular disease?’, which synthesizes several high-quality, randomised controlled trials.
Improving cardiovascular health must be a be a priority for the EU and Member States as it is crucial for making our healthcare systems more resilient and meeting our commitments on international frameworks.
EHN calls for a European wide joint action and/or network of Member States, supported by experts, to identify the most effective policies, measures, and programmes for reaching out to and managing high risk individuals for cardiovascular disease and to detect those with specific, highly treatable cardiovascular conditions.