MYP 4: Influence of modern technology in the treatment of

cardiovascular disease to increase life expectancy.

In today’s world, the technology has been so advanced that it has made life for human’s easier.
It has helped in curing diseases that were incurable decades ago. Technology has helped
improve one’s health physically and mentally.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a disease related to the heart. It stops some parts of the heart
from functioning and causes problems such as Coronary Heart Disease, Heart attacks,
Arrhythmias (abnormal heart beats), Heart failure, Heart valve disease, heart failure, Congenital
heart disease, Heart muscle disease, Pericardial disease, Marfan Syndrome, Aorta disease, and
vascular disease. It can be caused by genetics, consumption of tobacco, physical inactivity, not
maintaining a proper diet, lack of sleep, presence of celiac disease, and pollution in air.
Symptoms of CVD include chest pain, chest tightness, chest pressure, chest discomfort,
shortness of breath, pain, numbness, weakness or coldness in fingers/toes, and pain in neck,
jaw, throat, upper abdomen or back.
The Cardiovascular disease is the cause of almost every death in the United States, it has
affected so many people. According to the CDC (centers of disease control and prevention)
about 1 in 4 people in the U.S. die due to the CVD every year, which is approximately 610,000
people per year. About 72% of them are at risk due to CVD, and about every 34 seconds, a
person in the U.S. has a heart attack. The U.S. has a very interesting history with CVD, as Bill
Clinton, their former president had CVD and went through bypass to clear out his arteries. This
event shocked the Americans and built a curiosity into them about whether they have CVD too.
This was called the Clinton effect.
According to research, the CVD is not a disease that occurred in recent times, researchers have
discovered that some mummified corpses in Egypt showed signs of cardiovascular disease too.
Before the technology had been advanced, people had controlled the disease with proper diets.
There was no proper technology to cur e the disease but they invented the catheters to help
identify whether a person has CVD. This instrument is still used today just to confirm if a person
has CVD.
The use of technology has increased rapidly around the world. Even a person from a poor
family, is able to afford technological treatment. The use of technology has decreased death
rates as it cures almost any disease. Although it has been proved that CVD can be cured with
nothing but changes in lifestyle and diet, there are treatments such as MitraClip, Transcatheter
Aortic Valve Replacement, Watchman, Percutaneous Coronary Intervention, and Left-
Ventricular Assist Device which may help a little bit. All of these treatments are used to fix
valves and cure the cardiovascular disease. As the head of the international Medical
organization, I would definitely suggest TAVR, (Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement) which
is the best treatment as it has less chances of death than other treatments, but patients have
the independence to choose according to their budget and risk. Treatments like bypass and
open heart treatment can be very dangerous to the patient.
Recently, NASA had come up with their own technology to detect and prevent CVD. This technology is
the ArterioVision software initially developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena,
Calif. It is combined with ultrasound technology to measure the thickness of the inner two
layers of the carotid artery. Arterial thickening provides the earliest evidence of hardening of
the arteries. The test actually shows patients the status of their arteries, so the patients are
forced to take a proper diet and change their lifestyle accordingly in order to cure CVD. This
technology helps patients understand the riskiness of their disease so they can take measures
to cure it as soon as possible.
The development of such technologies sure affects the country, environmentally, and affects
the people’s lifestyle, relationship, and most importantly money. This process takes and gives a
lot of money which definitely affects the individual and the government economically.
This situation affects a country economically, therefore I would be pointing out the economical
factor in my essay. The usage of technologies to cure diseases, decreases the death rate, which
affect the Country’s economy in a good way and a bad way. When people do not face death,
the employment rate increases, therefore increasing the income of the country. The
government can gain more tax. The increasing population will also demand more money from
the government to feed themselves. When population increases, there is not enough jobs for
everyone, therefore resulting in high unemployment.
This is not the only angle the economy is being affected. To make the instruments used to cure
the patients, it sure takes a lot of money. Not only the organization but the patient is also
paying a lot of money to get their disease cured as soon as possible. In government hospitals,
the government is the one paying to buy the instruments to cure the disease, therefore the
government is not able to balance between the health center and trade etc. The research and
development center and medicine center also require cash during this process.
No matter how expensive the process takes, I think the poor should be able to access such
luxuries too. Since the lowering of the death rate is advantageous in a way, considering the idea
of letting some people who cannot afford the treatment, have their treatment done free of cost
is a good idea.
Sources:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-disease/symptoms-causes/syc-20353118

https://www.healthline.com/health/heart-disease/history#the-future-of-heart-disease

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiovascular_disease

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-disease/symptoms-causes/syc-20353118
https://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/guide/diseases-cardiovascular#1

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-disease/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20353124

https://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/features/heart-disease-detection-goes-high-tech#1

https://www.healthline.com/health-news/technology-may-find-heart-disease-in-healthy-patients#4

https://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/technologies/artery-20070606.html

https://www.news-medical.net/news/20120217/New-technology-opens-up-pathways-for-disease-
cures.aspx

http://blog.corindus.com/technology-impacting-heart-health-heart-disease-treatment