Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide affecting millions of people in both developed and developing countries. The dual aims of this book are to review the well-established and emerging risk factors in coronary heart disease and to apply this knowledge to public health approaches to disease prevention. The book includes authoritative accounts of studies within a single population and international studies, important areas of methodological development, trials to test preventive strategies, and the application of epidemiological and other knowledge to the development of public health policy for the prevention of widespread disease. It is an all-encompassing work containing contributions from the world authorities in the field.

The book is divided into four sections. The introduction reviews advances in the understanding of, and the current status, of risk factors for CHD. Section 2 looks at recent global trends and emerging patterns of CHD morbidity and mortality in several countries, and includes chapters on work done under the auspices of WHO on the global burden of disease in relation to smoking and blood pressure. Section 3 focuses on advances in understanding the aetiology of CHD with each chapter focused on a particular risk factor. Section 4 explores measures of prevention and intervention in terms of public health policy with specific examples from around the world.