Health service in Dorset beating death by heart attacks (From Thisisdorset)

Health service in Dorset beating death by heart attacks

11:30am Tuesday 14th February 2012 in Latest By Joanna Codd

BETTER treatment and faster response from the NHS have contributed to deaths from heart attacks plummeting in Dorset.

Over the last decade, the rate of men and women in the south western region dying from a heart attack has more than halved.

In the area covered by Dorset county council, 68 men and 37 women in every 100,000 died from a heart attack in 2000, compared to 23 men and 13 women in 2010.

The heart attack death rate in Bournemouth and Poole fell over the decade from 76 to 40 in every 100,000 men and from 40 to 16 for women.

Sam Crowe, consultant in public health at NHS Bournemouth and Poole said: “It’s good news and a trend that’s been tracked for quite a number of years.

“There’s not just been a fall in heart attack deaths, but also overall deaths from heart disease are well down. Over the last 20 years, there’s been a big fall.”

He said there were several reasons for the trend, including better control of risk factors and availability of modern treatments such as primary angioplasty at specialist centres that are open 24/7.

The treatment involves inflating a small balloon into a clogged artery and inserting a small stent, or scaffold, to keep it open.

Ninety per cent of eligible patients are treated within 90 minutes of arriving at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital centre last year compared to the national average of 81 per cent.

Mr Crowe said there had also been a fall in the number of people smoking, which can damage the heart, and improvements in diet.

“Compared with 30 to 40 years ago, people do eat more fruit and vegetables,” he said.

He added that there was also better recognition and treatment of risk factors such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure, but with an ageing population, more people were living with heart disease as a chronic condition