脳卒中と循環器病克服5ヵ年計画

Cerebrovascular diseases including stroke and cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of death among people more than 75 years old in Japan. The major causes of the need for long-term care in Japan are also cerebrovascular disease and cardiovascular disease, which together account for more than one-fifth of the total. Medical expenses for both cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases account for 20% of the total, which is the highest by injury/illness classification. Five-year plan against cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases were published for the purpose of notifying the importance of overcoming these diseases. The 2 main goals of the five-year plan against cerebrovascular disease and cardiovascular disease are to extend healthy life expectancy and to decrease age-adjusted mortality of cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases. The five-year plan against cerebrovascular disease and cardiovascular disease includes 5 major measures : developing human resources engaged in cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases ; enhancing service provision systems related to health, medical care, and welfare services ; promoting registration project regarding cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases ; spreading awareness of prevention measures and accurate information on cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases ; and promoting research on cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases. The measures are important for all patients, and all the promotions are needed to achieve the plan’s goals. Here, we describe the outline of the five-year plan against cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases.