Cardiovascular disease as a leading cause of death: how are pharmacists getting involved?

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology and Public Health
• Cardiovascular Medicine

Background:

• Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) represent a significant global health burden and leading cause of mortality.
• Community pharmacist interventions are increasingly recognized for their potential role in managing CVD and its risk factors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically appraise the evidence for community pharmacist interventions aimed at reducing cardiovascular events and mortality.
• To evaluate the impact of these interventions on key cardiovascular disease risk factors.

Main Methods:

• Systematic reviews and major randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were summarized and critically appraised.
• Evidence quality and heterogeneity of interventions and implementation contexts were considered.

Main Results:

• Limited direct measurement of clinical outcomes in trials, attributed to implementation challenges.
• High-quality evidence demonstrates pharmacist interventions improve management of hypertension, dyslipidemia, tobacco use, and elevated hemoglobin A1c.
• Heterogeneity in interventions and contexts necessitates cautious interpretation of meta-analyses.

Conclusions:

• Community pharmacists effectively manage key CVD risk factors, though direct clinical outcome data is sparse.
• Future research should prioritize clinical outcomes, especially in developing countries facing a growing CVD burden.
• Leveraging clinical registries and data linkage can enhance future research capabilities for collecting clinical outcome data.