In the U.S., the most common type of heart disease isย coronary artery disease (CAD), which can lead to a heart attack.

CAD is a narrowing of the small blood vessels that supply blood and oxygen to the heart, caused by a process calledย atherosclerosis, which is the term for the process of fatty substances, cholesterol, cellular waste products, calcium, and fibrin (a clotting material in the blood) building up in the inner lining of an artery. The buildup that results is called plaque. These plaques can also burst, causing a blood clot leading to a heart attack.

Atherosclerosis develops slowly and silently, over decades. It is often not diagnosed until it causes a heart attack because there are usually no symptoms until an artery is so clogged that the blood supply to the organs and tissues is affected.

ย Heart disease can also include severalย other types of conditions, among them:

Prevention

You canย prevent heart diseaseย by practicing healthy living habits and preventing or treating medical conditions. These include:

  • Eating a healthy diet
  • Maintaining a healthy weight
  • Getting enough physical activity
  • Do not smoke, or quit if you do
  • Limiting alcohol use
  • Checking your cholesterol
  • Controlling your blood pressure
  • Managing diabetes
  • Taking your medicine as prescribed by your health care provider
  • Having routine discussions with your health care team
Warning Signs

You may have one or more of the following signs of aย heart attack. Heart attack symptoms may also be different in men and women.1

Heart Attack Symptoms. 1. Chest pain or discomfort. 2. Nausea, feeling light-headed or unusually tired. 3. Pain or discomfort in the jaw, neck, or back. 4. Pain or discomfort in the arm or shoulder. 5. Shortness of breath. The longer you go without treatment to restore the blood flow, the greater the damage to the heart muscle.
Risk Factors

Risk factors for heart disease include several health conditions, family history, and lifestyle.ย About half of all Americansย have at least one of three key risk factors for heart disease. These risk factors include: high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and smoking.

Some risk factors cannot be changed.ย You cannot control some risk factors. But knowing what they are can help you understand your overall risk for heart disease. These risk factors may be related to your family history or other characteristics such as your age, gender, and race or ethnicity.

There are risk factors you can control. Many risk factors can be modified, treated, or controlled by focusing on lifestyle habits and taking medicine, if prescribed by a health care provider. These risks include health conditions such as:

Lifestyle choices and behaviors can also increase your risk for heart disease. Your doctor may recommend changes to your lifestyle to reduce your risk. These risk factors include:

  • Unhealthy diet
  • Physical inactivity
  • Too much alcohol
  • Smoking

If you think you might have any of these risk factors, talk to your doctor or health care provider.

Resources

Resources for Individuals

Community Resources

Community organizations can encourage members of the community to become heart healthy by utilizing a variety of resources. Oftentimes, resources are free to the public and made available in local settings such as faith-based organizations and community centers.

Blood Pressure Self-Monitoring

Developed by the American Heart Association,ย Check.Change.Controlย is an evidence-based program that utilizes blood pressure self-monitoring and incorporates concepts of remote monitoring, online tracking, and recruitment of local volunteer health mentors to encourage participants.

Million Hearts: Community Ambassador Moduleย 

Ohio State University Million Hearts Community Ambassador educational module to assist with education and implementation of the Million Heartsยฎย initiative. This educational module is specifically designed for the lay person with limited training in health care. Community members are trained on the completion and interpretation of Million Hearts screenings.

Information for Health Care Providers

There are a variety of tools and programs available to incorporate health systems change into the structure of health care settings. These tools are free to use and can be implemented in a variety of settings to identify patients who are at risk for heart disease and assist patients with achieving proper blood pressure control, cholesterol control, and optimal cardiovascular health.

Million Heartsยฎ

Million Hearts is a national initiative from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to prevent one million heart attacks and strokes by 2022, utilizing:

  • Standardized, evidence-basedย protocolsย for cholesterol management, tobacco cessation, and hypertension treatment
  • Action guidesย for clinicians, employers, and public health practitioners
  • A set ofย toolsย for providers and patients to enhance heart disease and stroke prevention and treatment efforts

You and your organization can become a Million Heartsย Hypertension Control Championย through participating in theย Hypertension Control Challengeย and reaching 80% control rates among hypertensive patients.

Target: BPย 

Target: BP is a national initiative launched by the American Heart Association and the American Medical Association to improve blood pressure control and build a healthier nation providing:

  1. Blood pressure improvement support
  2. Self-measured blood pressure
  3. Additionalย toolsย for health care organizations and care teams to use to improve blood pressure control

You and your organization can becomeย recognizedย by Target: BP by achieving at least a 70% control rate among patients.

National Center on Health, Physical Activity, and Disability

The National Center on Health works to help people with disability and other chronic health conditions improve their health status. The NCHPAD welcomes partnership with organizations dedicated to decrease the burden of chronic disease and obesity in the population.

Resources for Community Health Workers

In partnership with theย Florida Community Health Worker Coalition, the Helping Hearts CHI Referrals and Services is an initiative to establish and sustain a statewide bi-directional referral pathway between health systems and social service and lifestyle-change program providers to ensure patients with uncontrolled hypertension or hypercholesterolemia receive services based on their assessed needs. The Helping Hearts Program includes:

  1. CHI referral form development
  2. Electronic bi-directional referral platform
  3. CHW training on CHI referral and services
  4. CHI service delivery