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News / Headlines
Last Minute Gift Idea for Dad: In Memory of NBC's Tim Russert,
SHAPE Encourages Families to Give Dads a Heart Attack Prevention
Test for Father's Day
Leading cardiologists from SHAPE (Society for Heart Attack
Prevention and Eradication) once again called upon the nation to not
trust treadmill stress tests and traditional risk assessment.
Houston, TX (PRWEB) June 15, 2008 -- From last Father's day to this
year's, thousands of American men have been hit by a heart attack.
Sadly more than half of them died before reaching a hospital,
leaving their loved ones in pain and grief. What is especially sad
is that most of these victims could have been alerted to their risk
and possibly saved, had they been offered more than the old fashion
traditional cardiovascular risk assessment tests. The SHAPE (Society
for Heart Attack Prevention and Eradication) urges families to give
dads a heart attack prevention test for Father's Day. SHAPE also
calls for hospitals, clinics and physicians to offer Father's Day
specials with discounted rates.
One of the most meaningful Father's Day gifts would be a heart
attack preventive screening test, an excellent way to show Dad that
you love him and want him to enjoy a long and healthy life.
"Screening based on SHAPE that supplements traditional risk factor
tests could possibly have saved my late husband's life"
Like Tim (Russert), Guy suffered a massive heart attack and died
instantly just days after his physician reported his stress test as
normal. He was only 49. On behalf of our two sons, please protect
your loved ones by being proactive with your heart health. Know your
risk, if you have plaques in your coronary arteries you need
aggressive treatment and by doing so you can prevent a heart attack
The key is identifying asymptomatic patients at risk before a
critical event occurs. With current medical therapies, we can reduce
the chances of having a heart attack or sudden death by
approximately 75%
SHAPE is far more accurate than traditional risk factor tests in
identifying high risk patients and in need of aggressive medical
therapy
Heart attack and stroke account for more death and disability than
all cancers combined. Multiple screening tests are approved for
subclinical cancers such as mammography and colonoscopy. However,
none is approved for subclinical atherosclerosis, which underlies
both heart attack and stroke. This void leaves many individuals -
even those with severe atherosclerosis -unaware of their risk
because they have no symptoms.
"Testing for traditional risk factors and having a normal (average)
cholesterol and blood pressure is not enough and does not mean that
you will not have a heart attack. In fact over 60 percent of heart
attack victims have normal cholesterol. The tragic death of Tim
Russert, the host of MSNBC Meet the Press at the productive age of
58 years should serve as a wakeup call for the nation to overhaul
its practice and policies for risk assessment and treatment of
asymptomatic coronary artery disease" said Dr. Morteza Naghavi,
founder and Chairman of SHAPE. "One of the most meaningful Father's
Day gifts would be a heart attack preventive screening test, an
excellent way to show Dad that you love him and want him to enjoy a
long and healthy life."
Every day over 1900 previously healthy-looking individuals arrive at
emergency rooms with a 1st-time heart attack. Had they been tested
by traditional risk factor assessment based on existing guidelines,
about 70% of them would have been considered low to intermediate.
Modeled after successful cancer screening efforts, the SHAPE Task
force Guideline calls for men 45-75 years and women 55-75 years to
undergo screening to assess coronary plaque or carotid wall
thickness. It recommends the coronary calcium scan (Heart Scan) or
carotid scan (Carotid IMT) - two tests that have proven to be strong
predictors of those who are vulnerable to a heart attack or stroke.
Preventive exams give healthcare professionals the opportunity to
take appropriate action before fatal symptoms appear.
"Screening based on SHAPE that supplements traditional risk factor
tests could possibly have saved my late husband's life," said JoAnne
Zawitoski, a maritime attorney and board member of the AEHA who is
organizing the Golf Fore Heart: Guy Fernandez Memorial Charity
event. "Like Tim (Russert), Guy suffered a massive heart attack and
died instantly just days after his physician reported his stress
test as normal. He was only 49. On behalf of our two sons, please
protect your loved ones by being proactive with your heart health.
Know your risk, if you have plaques in your coronary arteries you
need aggressive treatment and by doing so you can prevent a heart
attack"
The SHAPE Task Force estimated that screening of asymptomatic men
and women would have the following potential clinical outcomes:
* It would prevent more than 90,000 deaths from cardiovascular
disease each year.
* It would reduce the population with a history of heart attack -
currently estimated to be 13.2 million - by as much as 25 percent.
* It would save approximately $21.5 billion annually by saving those
at highest risk, most of whom are unaware of the danger they are
facing.
"The key is identifying asymptomatic patients at risk before a
critical event occurs. With current medical therapies, we can reduce
the chances of having a heart attack or sudden death by
approximately 75%," according to Dr. Daniel Berman, Director of
Cardiac Imaging at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA.
"SHAPE is far more accurate than traditional risk factor tests in
identifying high risk patients and in need of aggressive medical
therapy," according to Dr. Berman.
Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the U.S. According
to the Center for Disease Control there will be approximately
700,000 first heart attacks in 2007. Among them some 159,600 men
will lose their lives, many within an hour of the event. AEHA urges
family members to try and save their father being one of those
victims.
About the Society for Heart Attack Prevention and Eradication
(SHAPE)
The mission of SHAPE (www.shapesociety.org)
is to eradicate heart attack by championing new strategies for
prevention while advancing the scientific quest for a cure. SHAPE
visualizes a world free from the threat of heart attack. The goals
of SHAPE are to reduce the instances of heart attack - especially in
the asymptomatic patient - through education programs presented to
both healthcare professionals and the community. SHAPE believes that
education and ongoing research are key elements in the success of
programs designed to go beyond the norm in the early detection and
treatment of cardiovascular disease.
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