We can’t say it often enough — to have a healthy heart, you have to take care of it! This is why the awareness-raising messages communicated on World Heart Day, September 29, are so important. As a committed player in the fight against cardiovascular diseases, we are once again partners on one of the biggest prevention campaigns organized by the World Heart Federation.
Raising awareness of cardiovascular diseases and strengthening adherence to treatment are the aims of the World Heart Federation’s (WHF) global campaign, which we’ve been supporting for the past two years. Convinced that adherence to treatment helps to improve patient care, we relay the message “Use ❤️ Know ❤️ Adherence Matters, Outcomes Reflect.”
From October 1, for the third year running, we are also rolling out our “Every Beat Matters” campaign. This campaign intends to raise awareness among doctors and especially patients on the importance of controlling heart rate. An elevated heart rate can be a precursor to serious complications for patients suffering from angina pectoris and/or heart failure. Since its launch in 2021, the “Every Beat Matters” campaign has been adapted for use in 30 countries. Just last year, it reached over 16 million people.
Shortness of breath, fatigue, swollen ankles… Heart failure can cause a range of daily challenges, markedly impacting patients’ quality of life.
Read our insight: Heart failure: When the heart can no longer keep up
Because we are attentive to serving patient needs, our awareness campaigns are developed in collaboration with patient experts in the field of cardiovascular diseases. To this end, and again in collaboration with the WHF, we invited patients to the last edition of the European Society of Cardiology congress held in August, and co-constructed a workshop with them. It was a first ever in the event’s history!
Watch the Heart Café at ESC 2023
How can we improve therapeutic adherence?
The term therapeutic adherence describes how well a patient follows the medical treatment prescribed by a health care professional as well as their recommendations. As the fourth-largest pharmaceutical group in cardiology worldwide1, committed to the fight against hypertension for over 50 years, Servier has made therapeutic adherence a top priority. It is a key lever for improving the therapeutic effectiveness of treatments to meet patient needs.
Therapeutic adherence: The missing piece to treat chronic diseases. Read the Tribune by Arnaud Lallouette, Executive Vice President Global Medical & Patient Affairs at Servier
With patient needs as our guide, we aim to provide innovative therapeutic solutions in the development of treatments targeting chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and heart failure. Our new single pill combinations (SPCs) are designed to meet this objective.
Cardiovascular diseases: Working alongside patients
Cardiovascular diseases (mainly hypertension, coronary heart disease, and heart failure) and hypercholesterolemia are on the rise worldwide. Faced with this public health challenge, we are committed to working alongside patients and health care professionals on a daily basis.
Hypertension, a silent killer
Hypertension is a chronic disease defined by excessively high blood pressure. It is one of the main risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Ever increasing, it is now one of the leading causes of premature death worldwide, according to the WHO. Hypertension is highly controllable, however, provided it is detected early and treated appropriately.
Angina pectoris: Don’t ignore the heart’s messages
Ischemic heart disease (a lack of oxygen to the heart muscle) is a major cause of death and disability worldwide, while angina (short for “angina pectoris”) represents its most common symptom. It is most often characterized by chest pain, which usually occurs during physical exertion.
Heart failure
Heart failure is a disease that affects over 64 million people worldwide. It is characterized by the inability of the heart muscle to perform its normal function of pumping blood through the body, and thus supplying it with oxygen and nutrients. This highly-disabling disease is often age-related, but it can occur in younger individuals, sometimes with malformed heart valves.
For more information:
Our My Health Partner website offers personalized content for patients who suffer from hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, coronary artery disease, and heart failure. For example, it offers information on risk factors, aimed at improving patients’ understanding of their condition.
[1] IQVIA, Analytics Link / World 74 countries – MAT Q1-2023