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How important are health systems in the prevention of cardiovascular and other noncommunicable diseases?

Nature Reviews Cardiology volume 6, pages 170–171 (2009)Cite this article

Over the past two decades, there has been a growing global realization of the need to include cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in mainstream public-health planning, particularly in developing countries where they have been missing from the agenda. NCDs are, to a great extent, potentially preventable, but are estimated to account for more than 60% of annual deaths globally.1 The social and economic gains that could result from a reduction in the morbidity and mortality associated with NCDs presents a strong rationale for public-health investment in population-based interventions, particularly those targeted toward high-risk groups, with the aim of reducing lifestyle and biological risk factors for these diseases.

As a result of this realization, organizations such as the WHO,2 the World Bank,3 and official development assistance agencies,4 now seem to accord NCDs higher priority than in the past. With the pronouncement of the World Bank's public policy on NCDs,3 and the inclusion of NCDs in the program portfolios of bilateral development agencies (such as the UK Department for International Development), an expectation exists that low-income and middle-income countries will have some additional fiscal resources available to allocate to the prevention and control of NCDs, including CVD. The idea of developing a global coordinating mechanism for pooling technical and fiscal resources earmarked for NCDs has been mooted.5 Such a framework could support NCD prevention and control in low-income and middle-income countries by drawing on the strength of many initiatives including WHO programs, such as the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, the Global Strategy on Diet and Physical activity, and regional initiatives in the arena of NCDs,2 civil-society-led efforts,6 collaborations between academia and the commercial sector,7 and corporate social responsibility programmes.8

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  1. Heartfile, 1 Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad, Pakistan sania@heartfile.org

Authors and Affiliations

  1. S Nishtar is the founding President of Heartfile, Islamabad, Pakistan.,

    Sania Nishtar

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  1. Sania Nishtar
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Nishtar, S. How important are health systems in the prevention of cardiovascular and other noncommunicable diseases?. Nat Rev Cardiol 6, 170–171 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncpcardio1445

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