Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of death and illness in the United States, and though much progress has been made in reducing cardiac risk factors, obesity and diabetes mellitus are on the rise. Preventing Illness Among People With Coronary Heart Disease explores recent advances in drug treatments for CAD risk factors and how these interventions can play an important role in improving the length and quality of patients’lives by addressing health behaviors and the need for behavioral change. This advanced text shows readers how mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, and alcoholism interplay with patients’physical health and how certain interventions can improve patients’outlook and health status.

Preventing Illness Among People With Coronary Heart Disease brings together researchers from a variety of disciplines to address subjects critical to secondary and tertiary preventive care for patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). This outstanding volume concentrates on studies from three major areas to help primary care practitioners and family practice physicians intervene successfully with risky behaviors among their patients prone to or afflicted with coronary artery disease. These include the effects of heart disease on patients’mental health and quality of life and the role of formal behavioral interventions in promoting health among patients with heart disease.

Readers of Preventing Illness Among People With Coronary Heart Disease acquire a solid understanding of the factors influencing CAD patients’behavioral patterns and mental states and how the prevalence of CAD can be reduced. Among the vital topics readers learn about are:

• the effects of alcohol upon CHD and blood pressure
• CHD risk factors in the elderly
• exercise interventions
• coping strategies and cardiac illness
• strategies for assessment and prevention
• smoking and cardiovascular disease
  
  Preventing Illness Among People With Coronary Heart Disease seeks to provoke greater discussion and scientific activity among professionals in the field to improve understanding of the interplay of mental health, physical health, and behavioral medicine for patients with heart disease. Primary care practitioners, family practice physicians, medical students, and others interested in preventive cardiology, preventive care, or chronic disease management will learn about recent advances in research and treatment approaches that can be applied immediately to daily practice.