Vital Signs Volume 9, Issue 3 | Page 2

Vital Signs Vital Signs is brought to you by the physicians of the Greater Louisville Medical Society. It is a free health and wellness publication intended for educating patients on important medical health topics. Vital Signs Team David Watkins, MD Vital Signs Adviser Bruce A. Scott, MD GLMS President Robert H. Couch, MD GLMS President-Elect A Q&A with Cardiologist Henry Sadlo, MD. Lelan Woodmansee, CAE GLMS Executive Director Bert Guinn, MBA, CAE GLMS Associate Executive Director Aaron Burch GLMS Communications Specialist Kate Williams GLMS Communications Designer GLMS Mission Promote the science, art and profession of medicine; Protect the integrity of the patient-physician relationship; Advocate for the health and well-being of the community; Unite physicians regardless of practice setting to achieve these ends. Notice Vital Signs is published by the Greater Louisville Medical Society, 101 W. Chestnut St. Louisville, KY 40202 Phone (502) 589-2001 Fax (502) 581-9022 www.glms.org For more information, contact Aaron Burch at (502) 589-2001 or [email protected]. Vital Signs is underwritten by: MedicaL Society Employment Services A Greater Louisville Medical Society Company Copyright 2014 The Greater Louisville Medical Society. All rights reserved. 2 H igh blood pressure is an epidemic Americans have faced for decades. According to research done by the American Heart Association, one of every three adults in the U.S. (77.9 million people) has high blood pressure. Of that number, nearly 20 percent are completely unaware of their condition. High blood pressure, otherwise known as hypertension, often has no single underlying cause. It may come from a combination of circumstances including genetics, inactivity and poor diet. While 1/3 of adult Americans are estimated to have hypertension, the Center for Disease Control has announced another 1/3 of our nation have pre-hypertension, meaning that without lifestyle changes we could soon be facing a country where more than 50 percent of the population has life-threatening high blood pressure. These numbers are humbling. In 2009 alone, high blood pressure was listed as the primary or contributing cause of death in 348,102 fatalities. In addition to the loss of life, high blood pressure takes a toll on the nation’s economy. The AHA estimates the direct and indirect costs of high blood pressure to top $50 billion on an annual basis. However, there is room for improvement. Public education on the disease is increasing and medicine has improved significantly in the past few decades. Henry Sadlo, MD, is an invasive, non-interventional cardiologist with the University of Louisville, currently focused on preventive cardiology and outpatient cardiology. He also practices at Jewish Hospital and Floyd Memorial Hospital. In practice for 24 years, Dr. Sadlo works with patients, ages 18 to 100, on cardiac issues such as heart attacks, valve problems and rhythm problems. We sat down with Dr. Sadlo to learn more about high blood pressure and what the average person can do to lessen his or her health risks. Have you enjoyed reading Vital Signs? AT&T Get healthy tweets from by following @VitalSigns2Go on Twitter. FIND US ON TWITTER OR TEXT @VitalSigns2Go follow VitalSigns2Go TO 40404. VITAL SIGNS Volume 9 • Issue 3