Abstract
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has become the most-common cause of death worldwide. The Western lifestyle does not promote healthy living, and the consequences are most devastating when social inequalities are combined with economic factors and population growth. The expansion of poor nutritional habits, obesity, and associated conditions (such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, physical inactivity, and advancing age) are major risk factors for developing CVD and are increasing in prevalence. Individuals in low-income and middle-income countries are undergoing a major shift in cardiovascular risk factors as they adopt Western lifestyles, a phenomenon that is hastened by industrialization, urbanization, and globalization. In this Perspectives article, I predict the 10 most-promising advances in cardiovascular therapies and interventions. Our improved understanding of CVD might help us, during the next decade, to achieve a transition from treating complex disease to promoting global cardiovascular health.
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