Manifestationen und prävention der arteriosklerose

Background. The relevance of atherosclerosis for the health care system is highlighted by the following figures: in Germany, the prevalence of coronary heart disease (CHD) amongst the population aged 65 years and older is measured at 18% for women and at 28% for men. In 2004, CHD mortality rates were calculated to be 80.57 per 100,000 women and 149.21 per 100,000 men. Aim of the study. This article reviews the literature on the manifestations of arteriosclerosis and documents the importance of preventative measures. Materials and methods. The current article is a literature-based review that considers international studies and guidelines. Results. According to German statistics, there were 61,550 cases (23,576 men/37,974 women) of death due to cerebrovascular disease in 2010. Stroke - not designated as hemorrhage or infarction - was responsible for the death of 8,422 men and 15,523 women. On the assumption that approximately 20% of ischemic strokes are attributable to occlusion or stenosis of the extracranial carotid artery, an annual incidence of up to 30,000 carotid artery-associated strokes is estimated for Germany.According to the 1998 Federal Health Monitoring Report, around 3 million people in Germany were affected by peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD). The prevalence of this disease has increased dramatically during the last decade. In high-income countries like Germany, this increase is estimated at 13.1%. As for the risk factors associated with PAOD, smoking has the greatest influence on disease development in high-income countries and in relative terms, hypercholesterolemia the least. In contrast to PAOD, data from the UK suggest that the incidence of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is on the decline. Correspondingly, the age-adjusted AAA mortality rate in England and Wales decreased from 40.4 per 100,000 inhabitants in 1997 to 25.7 per 100,000 in 2009. Conclusion. The importance of arteriosclerosis prevention is undisputed; however, preventive measures such as those advocated by the WHO need to be applied as early as during childhood or adolescence. In Germany there exists a significant potential for improvement in terms of educating the public about the risks of smoking, obesity, poor nutrition and high blood pressure. Prevention education programs should be offered not only sporadically, but at the nationwide level. The English full-text version of this article is available at SpringerLink (under "Supplemental").