Cardiovascular diseases in Moldova over the past 20 years have been a leading cause of death, accounting for over 55% of the deaths caused by noncommunicable diseases. Such diseases appear due to a series of behavioral risk factors, such as tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. They are also associated with physiological risk factors, such as high blood pressure, high level of cholesterol, high blood sugar and obesity, alongside non-modifiable risk factors like age, sex and genetic predisposition, IPN reports.
The data were presented by the National Public Health Agency in connection with World Heart Day that is celebrated on September 29. On this day, the public health centers of the Agency, in cooperation with national, district and municipal public health facilities, local authorities and public organizations, will stage information and communication activities to raise the population’s awareness of the importance of preventing behavioral risk factors and of the checking of blood glucose and blood pressure levels.
According to the Agency, morbidity from circulatory system diseases remains at a high stable level in the hierarchy of noncommunicable diseases. The incidence of such diseases in 2022 was 1,997.3 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, being 1.2 times higher than in 2021 (1,681.8 cases per 100,000 people), while the prevalence rate was 29,793.2 cases per 100,000 people, as opposed to 28,302.5 cases per 100,000 people in 2021.
Cardiovascular diseases are the world’s leading cause of death claiming almost 19 million lives each year. Over 85% of global CVD deaths are due to heart attack and stroke and one third of such deaths occur prematurely in people under 70 years of age. Over 75% of CVD deaths take place in low- and middle-income countries.
