A Burden on the Young and Poor

Ischemic heart disease (IHD) is the greatest single cause of mortality and loss of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) worldwide, accounting for roughly 7 million deaths and 129 million DALYs annually. Cardiovascular disease exerts a significant economic toll, accounting for one third of a projected $47 trillion in economic losses to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) for the next 20 years. Although high-income countries (HICs) continue to deal with significant IHD mortality, nearly two thirds of all IHD DALYs and more than half of deaths occur in lowand middle-income countries (LMICs). Many of these countries have experienced transformational economic growth and lifestyle changes during the past several decades that have increased the prevalence of IHD risk factors and rates of mortality. Understanding this change, how it Acute Coronary Syndromes Compendium