Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. The term “heart disease” refers to several types of heart conditions. The most common type is coronary artery disease, which can cause heart attack. Other kinds of heart disease may involve the valves in the heart, or the heart may not pump well and cause heart failure. Some people are born with heart disease.
About 610,000 people die of heart disease in the United States every year–that’s 1 in every 4 deaths.
Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. More than half of the deaths due to heart disease in 2009 were in men.
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common type of heart disease, killing over 370,000 people annually. Every year about 735,000 Americans have a heart attack. Of these, 525,000 are a first heart attack and 210,000 happen in people who have already had a heart attack.
