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Western Pacific

Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in the Western Pacific, accounting for nearly 40% of all deaths.

The region is also home to the world’s largest burden of rheumatic heart disease, which remains a major health issue in low- and middle-income countries in the Western Pacific Region, as well as among Indigenous communities in Australia and New Zealand.

5.7M

people die from CVD every year in the Western Pacific

CVD is the number one cause of death in the region

82,000

people die from rheumatic heart disease every year in the region

Latest News

Calling attention to the burden of NCDs in children at UNGA78

This is a statement made at the Pan American Health Organization during the 78th General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. Honorable Chair, Distinguished Delegates, On behalf of the American Heart Association, the InterAmerican Heart Foundation, the Interamerican Society of Cardiology, the Coalition for Americas’ Health and the World Heart Federation, we applaud the Pan […]

Rheumatic Heart Disease

Ecuador leads global World Heart Day celebrations

The annual celebrations for World Heart Day 2023, aimed at promoting heart health and advocating for universal access to cardiovascular care, are in full swing in Quito, Ecuador. The comprehensive agenda of activities, organised by the Ecuadorian Society of Cardiology (SEC) in partnership with the World Heart Federation (WHF), encompasses a range of events such […]

#UseHeart movement rallies for change as heart disease continues to claim most lives

GENEVA, 29 September 2023 – This World Heart Day, the World Heart Federation (WHF) is urging all sectors and citizens to join forces and take down cardiovascular disease (CVD) from its “number one killer” position. Conditions of the heart or blood vessels including stroke and heart failure killed more than 20 million people in 2021 […]

WHF at UNGA78 in New York

Health was at the top of the global agenda the third week of September with three UN High-Level Meetings addressing Universal Health Coverage (UHC), Pandemic Preparedness, Prevention and Response (PPPR), and Tuberculosis. World Heart Federation Board Members Tom Gaziano and Diana Vaca Mcghie led the WHF delegation at the UN General Assembly, advocating for heart […]

Air Pollution

Air Pollution

Chagas Disease

Chagas Disease

Cholesterol

Cholesterol

COVID-19

COVID-19

Diabetes

Diabetes

Healthy Diet

Healthy Diet

Heart Failure

Heart Failure

Hypertension

Hypertension

Obesity

Obesity

Prevention

Prevention

Rheumatic Heart Disease

Rheumatic Heart Disease

Tobacco

Tobacco

Women & CVD

Women & CVD

The most common heart attack symptom, in both men and women, is some type of chest pain, pressure or discomfort. But chest pain is not always the most noticeable symptom, especially in women, who are more likely to experience it as pressure or tightness in the chest. They may even have no chest pain at […]