Cardiovascular disease (CVD) kills almost 54,000 Australians
each year and remains one of Australia's greatest health problems.
To date national reporting has focused on risk factors and deaths
but Medical Care of Cardiovascular Disease in Australia
changes the focus to monitoring the medical management of CVD.
The latest in the AIHW's CVD series, Medical Care of
Cardiovascular Disease in Australia, describes data sources
available to monitor medical care, and assesses their uses and
limitations. It also gives information on the prevalence of CVD
conditions in the community, their care in general practice and in
hospital, drugs used to treat these conditions, the costs of
cardiovascular health care, and the size of the specialised medical
labour force involved with CVD.
Up till now there has been relatively little examination of CVD
treatment. Medical Care of Cardiovascular Disease in
Australia is the first report to highlight the full range of
information about CVD. It will be followed by reports examining two
specific treatments, cardiac surgery and coronary angioplasty.
Co-author of the report, Ms Senes-Ferrari said 'some idea of the
impact of CVD in the community can be gauged by considering that it
was at least one of the conditions diagnosed for almost 20% of all
public acute and private hospitalisations in 1995-96. Also, CVD was
the second most common problem seen by GPs in 1990-91.'
The report also shows the dramatic cost impact of modern drugs
used to treat CVD. Ms Senes-Ferrari said that 'between 1990 and
1995 the total cost of subsidised prescriptions for ACE inhibitors,
which are used for high blood pressure, increased from $158 million
to $270 million, and the cost of lipid lowering drugs rose from $49
million to $178 million.'
Other findings in the report include:
- In 1993-94, health care costs for CVD were 12% ($3,719 million)
of the total health care costs for all diseases. Health care costs
of CVD increased with age, with two-thirds of the total CVD costs
being for those aged over 64.
- In 1995, over 2.8 million Australians suffered from a CVD
condition, high blood pressure being the most commonly reported
condition.
- In 1995-96 the average length of stay in hospital for a CVD
condition was 6.6 days, with the average stay for stroke being 12.5
days. This compared with 4.3 days on average for all
conditions.
22 December 1998
Further information: Susana Senes-Ferrari, ph.
02 6244 1052, or AIHW Medical Adviser, Dr Paul Magnus, ph. 02 6244
1149.
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, ph. 02 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for details.