February is recognized as Heart Month in Jamaica.
Conditions such as high blood pressure (hypertension), heart failure, coronary artery disease or heart attacks, strokes and peripheral vascular disease are conditions affecting the circulatory system called cardiovascular diseases. These conditions are the leading cause of death worldwide and Jamaica is no exception. High blood pressure is one of the leading risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
Check out your cardiovascular health by having your blood pressure checked this month if you have not done it recently. Blood pressure checks can be done at the your nearby clinics, health centre, doctors office and some work places.
Major public hospitals (Kingston Public Hospital), The University Hospital of the West Indies, the Heart Foundation of Jamaica and several private facilities have cardiologists available who can diagnose and treat cardiovascular diseases when these occur.
The LIFE Project is an island-wide cohort (follow up study) being conducted in Jamaica to understand the reasons why high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease are common.
All participants in the LIFE study have blood pressure measured. They are also asked questions about their family history, health history and lifestyle and have blood, urine, hair and nail samples are collected to check for diabetes and high cholesterol as well as to understand how genetics and exposure to toxins in the environment may affect blood pressure and cardiovascular disease risk. To understand more around the tests for these conditions please visit Understanding Your Results</a>.
Find out if you qualify to be part of the LIFE study by clicking here to Participate.
For more information on cardiovascular disease, join The Heart Foundation of Jamaica for their exhibit and live discussions for Heart month 2022.
At The Life Project, we study the causes of cancer, cardiovascular illnesses and diabetes to better understand, diagnose, treat and prevent these diseases in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean.
Interested in participating in the life study? Your participation will help us to maximise the chances of learning lifesaving information about cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
Access a wide range of informational sources to meet the social, financial and health needs of participants, patients and caregivers.
We are studying the causes of cancer and cardiovascular illnesses & diabetes to better understand, how to prevent, diagnose & treat black patients in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean.