Preventable cardiovascular events are big economic burden

(HealthDay)—Preventable cardiovascular events place a considerable health and economic burden on the United States, according to research published in the Sept. 7 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Matthew D. Ritchey, D.P.T., from the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues used Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project databases to identify emergency department visits and hospitalizations for nonfatal and fatal cardiovascular events. Deaths were identified using National Vital Statistics System data.

The researchers found that in 2016, 2.2 million hospitalizations resulting in $32.7 billion in costs and 415,480 deaths occurred. Men and non-Hispanic blacks had the highest rates of hospitalization and mortality, which increased with age. Among adults aged 18 to 64 years, 805,000 hospitalizations and 75,245 deaths occurred. Rates of emergency department visits varied by state (from 56.4 per 100,000 in Connecticut to 274.8 per 100,000 in Kentucky). Variance was also seen for hospitalizations (484 [Wyoming] to 1,670.3 per 100,000 [Washington, D.C.]) and mortality (111.2 [Vermont] to 267.3 per 100,000 [Mississippi]). Without preventive intervention, approximately 16.3 million events and $173.7 billion in hospitalization costs could occur from 2017 to 2021.

"Million Hearts-preventable events place a considerable health and economic burden on the United States," the authors write. "With coordinated efforts, many of these events could be prevented in every state to achieve the initiative's goal (to prevent one million cardiovascular events during 2017 to 2021)."

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