Coronary Heart Disease

• Researchers are particularly concerned about coronary heart disease because it is the primary cause of death worldwide from cardiovascular illnesses.

About Coronary Heart Disease

• Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a condition where the blood channels that bring oxygen-rich blood to the heart become constricted as a result of the accumulation of fatty deposits (plaques) inside the arteries.
• The arteries may stiffen and constrict as a result of these deposits over time, limiting the amount of blood getting to the heart.
• The main causes of coronary heart disease are unhealthy lifestyles, poor diets, physical inactivity, cigarette use, and excessive alcohol intake.
• The only way to repair damaged cardiac tissue in people is through a heart transplant, which has its own set of difficulties.

Latest Research

• A team of scientists has developed a technique that uses specific proteins to turn healthy adult skin cells into cardiac cells.
• Cellular reprogramming—the process of changing a cell's form—involves particular proteins called transcription factors that modify a cell's gene expression and instruct it to adopt a new cellular identity.

Challenges

• Lack of a targeted policy towards NCDs, especially CVDs, and poorer availability, accessibility, and affordability of effective and efficient treatment are the main difficulties facing cardiac care in India.

Low Accessibility

• In terms of affordable and effective service delivery infrastructure, there is low availability. Affordable preventive and curative cardiac treatment is not widely available nationwide.

Minimal Accessibility

• Access to healthcare has not always been equal.
• The Indian Healthcare System has a major problem. Cardiology public healthcare infrastructure is also ineffective and insufficient. Only 30% of the population is served by the 60% of hospitals in India that are found in metropolitan regions. Less than 10% of the rural population and just 13% of its inhabitants have access to primary healthcare facilities.

Low Affordability

• The majority of the population is quite concerned about the cost of quality care, both for preventative checkups and treatment.
• Large hospitals are frequently fueled by the utilisation of cutting-edge medical equipment, which raises the cost of care in Tier I cities. The low prevalence of Health Insurance in India further exacerbates the affordability issue.

Government Initiative

• Under the National Health Mission, the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases, and Stroke (NPCDCS) is now being implemented (NHM).
• The Strengthening of Tertiary Care Cancer Facilities Scheme is being implemented by the Central Government to assist in the establishment of State Cancer Institutes (SCI) and Tertiary Care Centers (TCCC) in various regions of the nation.
• Under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana, oncology is a focus for the new AIIMS and several upgraded institutions (PMSSY).
• The Affordable Medications and Reliable Implants for Treatment (AMRIT) Deendayal outlets have been established in 159 institutions/hospitals to provide patients with cancer and cardiovascular disease medications and implants at reduced costs.
• The Department of Pharmaceuticals established Jan Aushadhi outlets to offer generic medications at fair costs.
• Project on ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI): To enable quick identification of heart illness, the Maharashtra government introduced the STEMI programme recognised by NHM in 2021.
• ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) is a situation when one of the heart’s primary arteries, providing oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle, gets completely blocked.

Way Forward

• The risk of cardiovascular disease is decreased by quitting smoking, reducing salt intake, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, engaging in regular physical activity, and abstaining from alcohol.
• National Health Policies that foster environments where healthy options are both affordable and accessible are crucial for encouraging people to adopt and maintain healthy behaviours.

Premature deaths can be avoided by determining who is most vulnerable to CVDs and making sure they receive the right care.

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