Every Second Ukrainian Has Cardiovascular Diseases

On the eve of World Heart Day, celebrated on 29 September, Pharmaceutical Company ‘Darnytsia’, together with Gradus Research, undertook a study* to find out what percentage of the population in Ukraine suffers from cardiovascular diseases and what Ukrainians know about them.

As it turned out, almost every second Ukrainian has problems with the heart and blood vessels. In particular, 48% of people aged 35–60 responded that they had high blood pressure and/or cholesterol and had already received medical advice in this regard.

Only 20% of people of this age have never measured their blood pressure or checked their cholesterol level. 23% believe that their cholesterol level and blood pressure are normal, so they did not see a doctor.

At the same time, almost all Ukrainians understand that cardiovascular diseases pose a serious threat to life. They are aware of the importance of going to the doctor if they develop heart problems.

Thus, 95% of people aged 35–60 believe that diagnosing cardiovascular disease is very important (71%) or rather important (24%).

The majority of the population is aware of the risk factors that can cause cardiovascular diseases. More than half of Ukrainian men and women named frequent stress, obesity, hypertension (high blood pressure), and alcohol abuse among the main causes of cardiovascular diseases.

According to 60% of Ukrainians, hypertensive crisis is the result of high blood pressure. Every second respondent considers brain damage and death a consequence of high blood pressure.

The vast majority of the population know that it is important to monitor the level of cholesterol in the blood—41% believe that this is very important and 45% think it is rather important.

People aged 35–60 consider diet (64%), weight loss (54%), physical activity (47%), outdoor walks (34%), and avoidance of alcoholic beverages (34%) to be the most effective ways to lower blood cholesterol. However, lifestyle modification alone is not always effective.

So, as we can see, while realizing the seriousness of cardiovascular diseases and understanding their causes and consequences, not all Ukrainians rush to doctors, which can have detrimental consequences for their health.

‘Cardiovascular diseases are among the most common diseases in the world. Unfortunately, Ukraine confidently holds the lead in the number of deaths from their complications. In a situation of full-scale war, in which we live for the second year in a row, cardiovascular accidents will become ‘younger’, and their consequences in many cases can be fatal. Therefore, I urge you to take care of the health of your heart in advance, not to wait for ‘things coming as a bombshell’, in no case self-medicate and consult doctors’, says Ihor Nykyforchyn, Medical Affairs Director at Pharmaceutical Company ‘Darnytsia’.  

For reference

*The study by Gradus Research ordered by Pharmaceutical Company ‘Darnytsia’, 1,000 interviews, women and men aged 18–60 years living in cities with a population of 50K+, except for temporarily occupied territories and territories under hostilities, 08–11 September 2023. The analysis was based on the target audience aged 35–60.