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54 CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH MANAGING THE MATTERS of the By Margaret Mielczarek. Ischaemic heart disease, where the heart is starved of oxygen due to a reduced blood supply, is “the leading cause of death in Australia”, according to statistics released by finder.com.au.1 In 2019, the disease “killed 18,244 people ... an average of 56 deaths per 100,000”, states a report published by the same website, ‘Death statistics’ by Sophie Wallis2, who adds that while the rate has “fallen significantly (34.6 per cent) since 2010”, deaths from heart disease accounted for 10.8 per cent of deaths in Australia in 2019 – still a significant proportion. So, this month, we look at some important matters of the heart, and how we can all do our bit to help reduce these numbers further. RETAIL PHARMACY ASSISTANTS • APR 2021