The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses a screening tool called the Listing of Impairments to identify claimants who are so severely impaired that they cannot work at all and thus immediately qualify for benefits. In this report, the IOM makes several recommendations for improving SSA's capacity to determine disability benefits more quickly and efficiently using the Listings.

Cardiovascular, respiratory, and related conditions cause more than 40 percent of all deaths globally, and their substantial burden is rising, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Their burden extends well beyond health effects to include significant economic and societal consequences. Most of these conditions are related, share risk factors, and have common control measures at the clinical, population, and policy levels. Lives can be extended and improved when these diseases are prevented, detected, and managed. This volume summarizes current knowledge and presents evidence-based interventions that are effective, cost-effective, and scalable in LMICs.

Translational Research in Coronary Artery Disease: Pathophysiology to Treatment covers the entire spectrum of basic science, genetics, drug treatment, and interventions for coronary artery disease. With an emphasis on vascular biology, this reference fully explains the fundamental aspects of coronary artery disease pathophysiology. Included are important topics, including endothelial function, endothelial injury, and endothelial repair in various disease states, vascular smooth muscle function and its interaction with the endothelium, and the interrelationship between inflammatory biology and vascular function. By providing this synthesis of current research literature, this reference allows the cardiovascular scientist and practitioner to access everything they need from one source. - Provides a concise summary of recent developments in coronary and vascular research, including previously unpublished data - Summarizes in-depth discussions of the pathobiology and novel treatment strategies for coronary artery disease - Provides access to an accompanying website that contains photos and videos of noninvasive diagnostic modalities for evaluation of coronary artery disease

Originally published in 1991, ' Drugs Treatment of Hyperlipidemia' is a collection of essays that include studies on lipid metabolism, diagnosis of lipoprotein disorders, detection and treatment of dyslipoporteinemia and trials of lipid lowering drugs amongst its topics

In the past two decades a number of studies have shown that abnormalities in the function and structure of coronary microcirculation can be detected in several cardiovascular diseases. On the basis of the clinical setting in which it occurs, coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) can be classified into four types: CMD in the absence of any other cardiac disease; CMD in myocardial diseases; CMD in obstructive epicardial coronary artery disease; and iatrogenic CMD. In some instances CMD represents an epiphenomenon, whereas in others it represents an important marker of risk or may contribute to the pathogenesis of myocardial ischemia, thus becoming a possible therapeutic target. This book provides an update on coronary physiology and a systematic assessment of microvascular abnormalities in cardiovascular diseases, in the hope that it will assist clinicians in prevention, detection and management of CMD in their everyday activity.

Chronic diseases are common and costly, yet they are also among the most preventable health problems. Comprehensive and accurate disease surveillance systems are needed to implement successful efforts which will reduce the burden of chronic diseases on the U.S. population. A number of sources of surveillance data-including population surveys, cohort studies, disease registries, administrative health data, and vital statistics-contribute critical information about chronic disease. But no central surveillance system provides the information needed to analyze how chronic disease impacts the U.S. population, to identify public health priorities, or to track the progress of preventive efforts. A Nationwide Framework for Surveillance of Cardiovascular and Chronic Lung Diseases outlines a conceptual framework for building a national chronic disease surveillance system focused primarily on cardiovascular and chronic lung diseases. This system should be capable of providing data on disparities in incidence and prevalence of the diseases by race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and geographic region, along with data on disease risk factors, clinical care delivery, and functional health outcomes. This coordinated surveillance system is needed to integrate and expand existing information across the multiple levels of decision making in order to generate actionable, timely knowledge for a range of stakeholders at the local, state or regional, and national levels. The recommendations presented in A Nationwide Framework for Surveillance of Cardiovascular and Chronic Lung Diseases focus on data collection, resource allocation, monitoring activities, and implementation. The report also recommends that systems evolve along with new knowledge about emerging risk factors, advancing technologies, and new understanding of the basis for disease. This report will inform decision-making among federal health agencies, especially the Department of Health and Human Services; public health and clinical practitioners; non-governmental organizations; and policy makers, among others.

The single greatest health risk for women today-more than stroke and all cancers "combined-is heart disease. Yet despite this documented fact, heart disease is still considered primarily a "male problem," with the result that far too many women go untreated by doctors and are misinformed by the existing literature. Now, with this groundbreaking new book, Dr. Nieca Goldberg, the nation's leading expert on women's heart disease, has at last remedied this situation. "Women "Are Not Small Men presents detailed, decade-by-decade programs that give women at any age OF life the facts and the guidance they need to recognize, treat, and prevent heart disease. In the course of her work as founder and chief of the Women's Heart Program at New York's Lenox Hill Hospital, Dr. Goldberg has come to a startling realization: Women experience heart disease in a fundamentally different way than men do. The physiology of a woman's heart attack is not the same as a man's, the symptoms of heart disease and signs of impending heart attack differ for women, and once heart disease has been recognized, women often do not get the treatment and medications they need. In this accessible book, she uses these critical insights to build a complete treatment and prevention program geared to the unique needs of women. Engagingly written and grounded in compelling true patient stories, the book presents comprehensive instructions on what you can do to maintain or improve your heart health, including how to spot the warning signs of heart disease, the exercises and diet to follow for prevention and recovery, how to assess risk factors, techniques for reducing stress, the truth about estrogen and hormonereplacement therapy, which supplements and herbal remedies really work, and how to become your own advocate in dealing with the medical profession. Dr. Nieca Goldberg has made it her mission to give women the treatment and information they deserve. Now she makes her research, prevention program, and recovery strategies accessible to all women. Authoritative, caring, and up-to-the-minute, this is destined to become the women's health book of the new millennium.

Preventive cardiology is a fast moving field that places emphasis on the prevention and treatment of coronary disease. Preventive Cardiology: Insights Into the Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease, Second Edition is intended for clinical cardio- gists, internists, primary care providers, and allied health care professionals who wish to extend their knowledge and expertise in the rapidly expanding field of preventive car- ology. It is the mission of this book to provide clinicians with the understanding and tools necessary to implement prevention in their daily practices. Recent changes in the delivery of health care in the United States and abroad, in conjunction with new scientific evidence supporting the role of preventive strategies in the maintenance of cardiovascular health, have focused new attention and efforts on the field of cardiovascular disease prevention. The field of cardiology is thus making a gradual transition from the technology-driven, intervention-oriented perspective of the last several decades to a new, preventive, molecular-based perspective. As fresh evidence amasses that preventive measures produce a considerable decrease in the incidence of both primary and secondary cardiac events and mortality, there is growing, widespread acknowledgment that health care providers from all arenas must initiate preventive str- egies in the management and care of their patients.

The New York Times bestselling guide to the lifesaving diet that can both prevent and help reverse the effects of heart disease Based on the groundbreaking results of his twenty-year nutritional study, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn illustrates that a plant-based, oil-free diet can not only prevent the progression of heart disease but can also reverse its effects. Dr. Esselstyn is an internationally known surgeon, researcher and former clinician at the Cleveland Clinic and a featured expert in the acclaimed documentary Forks Over Knives. Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease has helped thousands across the country, and is the book behind Bill Clinton’s life-changing vegan diet. The proof lies in the incredible outcomes for patients who have followed Dr. Esselstyn's program, including a number of patients in his original study who had been told by their cardiologists that they had less than a year to live. Within months of starting the program, all Dr. Esselstyn’s patients began to improve dramatically, and twenty years later, they remain free of symptoms. Complete with more than 150 delicious recipes perfect for a plant-based diet, the national bestseller Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease explains the science behind the simple plan that has drastically changed the lives of heart disease patients forever. It will empower readers and give them the tools to take control of their heart health.