The Malta Independent on Sunday
World Heart Day in Malta
On 29 September, on the occasion of World Heart Day 2017, The Maltese Cardiac Society and Health Promotion & Disease Prevention Directorate in collaboration with Novartis organized activities to increase awareness on Heart Disease amongst patients and the public.
The World Heart Federation hosts World Heart Day (WHD), and the theme for 2017 is Share the Power.
The goals for World Heart Day - and generally in Heart Failure - are to help motivate and equip people and their caregivers to understand their heart failure, recognize symptoms, and have productive conversations with their doctors in order to optimize their condition management and outcomes.
The activities for patients and public, at Mater Dei Hospital included a walk round the hospital ring road. Commemorative T-shirts, sponsored by Novartis, were given to walk participants.
This was followed by Circuit training and a CPR demonstration at the Main Foyer.
The highlight of the activities were educational lectures entitled `Heart Disease` by Dr. Robert G. Xuereb, President of the Maltese Cardiac Society and `Talk Control` by Dr Mark Abela, Clinical Lead for Cardiac Rehabilitation.
“Malta is one of the many countries in the world celebrating World Heart Day,” said Dr. Robert G. Xuereb.
“Cardiovascular Disease is the most common cause of death globally, which is also the leading cause of death in Malta,” he added.
There is an overall decreasing trend in mortality in both males and females in Malta and the EU, however the EU rates are lower than those for Malta.
Dr Robert Xuereb mentioned the financial implications and that Cardiovascular Disease exerts a significant economic burden. Dr. Xuereb described the main pathologies of Cardiovascular Disease, including Heart Failure and showed how the heart of a Heart Failure patient would look like when compared to a normal patient.
Dr Xuereb emphasized the importance of Primary Prevention. “Regular check-ups, a good diet, regular exercise and following appropriate treatment are clear examples of how one can modify the risk,” he explained.
Dr Mark Abela, Clinical Lead for Cardiac Rehabilitation, explained the benefits of exercise and the services offered by the Cardiac Rehabilitation Department at Mater Dei Hospital, where patients are assessed and given an individualised exercise Programme.
Dr Abela made reference to World Heart Day theme for this year - Share the Power and explained that the power to combat Cardiovascular Disease is shared by the doctors and also most im- portantly by patients. He added that if patients do not help themselves and do not follow the doctor`s recommendations, then all efforts would be in vain.
At the Main Foyer, staff from the Cardiac Rehabilitation Team assessed the risk of heart disease by checking weight and body mass index, blood sugar and blood pressure.
The Health Promotion Unit were also on site to promote the various educational programmes available and provide advice on the importance of weight control, diet, exercise, smoking cessation, diabetes, blood pressure and cholesterol control.