Statement from the Ministry of Health on Heart Health and 117 Heart Centers

According to the statement made by the Ministry, cardiovascular diseases directly affect the life expectancy, daily living activities and general quality of life of citizens. Unhealthy lifestyle habits, especially from early ages, can negatively affect heart health and pave the way for serious diseases in the future. Adopting healthy lifestyle habits, early identification of risk factors and effective treatment are of great importance in protecting cardiovascular health.

ADVANCED DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT SERVICES ARE PROVIDED WITH 117 HEART CENTERS

In the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, comprehensive health services are provided by 117 heart centers, including 101 adult heart centers and 16 pediatric heart centers, operating in public hospitals within the Ministry of Health. In these centers, which provide services with advanced medical technology and expert healthcare teams, the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up processes of patients are carried out in a holistic manner with the coordination of relevant branches, especially cardiology and cardiovascular surgery.

While heart centers enable the provision of comprehensive health services, from early diagnosis processes to advanced treatment methods, they also play an important role in the evaluation of patients with advanced heart failure and meeting appropriate medical criteria and in carrying out heart transplantation processes when necessary.

Last year, 46 heart transplants were performed, and 11 heart transplants were performed in the first half of this year. Post-transplant follow-up and treatment of heart transplant patients is carried out by expert teams. Thanks to these centers, citizens are provided with faster and easier access to health services for cardiovascular diseases and the opportunity to benefit from advanced diagnosis and treatment options for serious heart diseases.

Studies to prevent cardiovascular diseases are continued in line with the preventive health services approach. In this context, risk assessments for cardiovascular diseases are carried out in primary health care services, and studies are carried out for the early diagnosis and effective management of risk factors such as hypertension and diabetes.

A comprehensive fight to prevent tobacco use continues, the development of healthy nutrition and regular physical activity habits is encouraged, and education and awareness activities are carried out to increase the health literacy of the society.

Protecting heart health requires a holistic approach based not only on treating the disease after it occurs, but also on reducing risks before the disease develops.

HEALTHY LIFE HABITS PROTECT HEART HEALTH

In order to prevent cardiovascular diseases, it is important for individuals to stay away from tobacco and tobacco products, have a healthy and balanced diet, increase physical activity in daily life, maintain ideal body weight, have their blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels checked regularly, and consult their family physician to have a cardiovascular disease risk assessment.

PAY ATTENTION TO THESE SYMPTOMS

In addition, if chest pain, shortness of breath, palpitations or stroke symptoms develop, it is necessary to consult a healthcare institution without delay. A significant portion of cardiovascular diseases are caused by preventable risk factors.

By adopting healthy living habits, individual quality of life can be increased and the burden of disease in society can be significantly reduced.