World heart day is celebrated every year on 29th September with a new theme and a fresh focus.  From a mere campaign in the year 2000 to spread awareness about cardiovascular diseases (CVD), which is the leading cause of death worldwide, it has now become a welcome change towards a healthier lifestyle.

This year’s theme  to “USE ❤️  FOR EVERY ❤️” focuses on using this day as an opportunity for everyone to stop and consider how best to use heart for humanity, for nature, and for oneself.  On this Day let us all pledge to extend access to cardiac care not only to the privileged but also to the underprivileged. May the doctors and the patients join hands to advance correct knowledge about cardiac diseases and its risk factors in rural and smaller towns of our country.

India has one of the highest burdens of CVD worldwide. The annual number of deaths from CVD in India is roughly around 4.8 million with its prevalence rising rapidly not only in urban but also in rural population. The situation has become more dreadful post COVID as seen by the rising trends in sudden cardiac death & MI in young patients. It is thereby becoming essential to create a constant awareness to adopt healthier lifestyle including mental health, take tiny steps to improve our physical health, quit smoking, avoid alcohol and have adequate sleep daily

With the advent of MAKE IN INDIA initiative, domestic companies are entering the healthcare industry to manufacture quality products in cardiac care. I thank IITPL for coming out with affordable and quality cardiac Cath-Labs. It has helped our centre, like many others, in providing affordable cardiac care to all. By successfully carrying out 38 cases in a day at our centre, the stability of the machine was well tested.