Description
When the American College of Cardiology (ACC) was formed in 1949, heart disease and its complications had quite suddenly emerged as the medical scourge of the 20th century. The discovery of penicillin and streptomycin during World War II markedly increased the average lifespan, allowing heart disease to replace infection as our nation’s number one killer.
Indeed, the 65 years since the founding of the ACC witnessed what historians will likely recognize as one of the greatest medical achievements of our era. These breakthroughs created entire new industries, including that of medical devices and biotechnology. In parallel with these stunning medical and national achievements, the passionate vision of a few immigrant New York physicians led to the creation of the American College of Cardiology, which now includes members in 132 countries throughout the world.
Although the war is not won…about a third of the world’s deaths are attributed to cardiovascular disease…cardiovascular care is clearly winning. Life expectancy has increased by more than a decade since the formation of the ACC. In the past 30 years deaths from heart attack and stroke have fallen by 50%, and by 36% in just the past decade. In the coming decade coronary disease will probably no longer be the nation’s leading cause of death. This book chronicles the story of the Golden Era of cardiology and the ACC on its 65th anniversary.
