Kim Smith
11/14/2012
A new study out of the U of A shows that we are keeping better care of our hearts than we were ten years ago.
The research found that the rates of cardiac procedures have either plateaued or declined in Alberta in the last ten years.
"The concern of a decade ago that they would continue to go up and up and up and bankrupt the system does not seem to be born out by the data," says Assistant U of A Professor and lead author of the study, Dr. Sean McMurtry.
While the study cannot answer why the rates have declined, McMurtry says it is likely due to two reasons.
"Better technology (better health care) as well as lower prevalence of risk factors," he says. "People are doing a better job of looking after themselves."
However, the study found that rates in northern rural areas are consistently higher than the provincial average.
"Perhaps that's an opportunity for the health care community to target those places and try to do a better job." (ks)
|