The Australian Government has launched the first major update to the cardiovascular disease prevention guidelines in over a decade, in a move that the Heart Foundation estimates could impact the care of 8 million Australians.
 
Even after decades of progress, cardiovascular disease remains the nation’s biggest killer and accounts for one in four Australian deaths. Cardiovascular disease puts immense strain on patients, their families, the health system, and costs Australia more than $12.7 billion each year.
 
The guidelines will provide clinicians with the most up-to-date evidence on the early detection, assessment, and management of cardiovascular disease risk. Along with the new guidelines, a calculator has been designed for general practitioners (GPs) to more accurately estimate their patients’ risk of cardiovascular disease.
 
For the first time, the guidelines and calculator provide a risk equation that has been uniquely modified and recalibrated for the Australian population using contemporary cohort data. This will help GPs to better identify high-risk people in need of treatment.
 
The government has launched the updated guidelines in collaboration with the National Heart Foundation of Australia, on behalf of the Australian Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance. The guidelines are in line with National Health and Medical Research Council standards and endorsed by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.
 
The government in the 2023 May Budget committed $1 million in this financial year (2023–24) to commence implementation of the guidelines and embedding of the calculator into GP software.