Billions of individuals are experiencing longer and healthier lives
because of advances in medical technology and improving economic conditions
in developing nations—but the cloud in this silver lining is that heart
disease is on the rise.
In a report released on April 26, researchers call cardiovascular disease
an urgent threat to global health and predict that by 2020, it will become
the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. The report, A Race Against Time: The Challenge of Cardiovascular Disease in Developing
Economies (http://www.earthinstitute.columbia.edu/news/2004/images/raceagainsttime_FINAL_0410404.pdf), was sponsored by the Australian Health Policy Institute at the University
of Sydney, Columbia University in New York City, and the World Health Organization
(WHO).