Cardiovascular diseases, including stroke, are the leading cause of death in the European Union (EU), responsible for more than 4 million deaths in 2013 and accounting for 45% of all deaths. Coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke account for the majority CVD-related deaths, with 1.8 million deaths from CHD and 1 million from stroke annually.
In the past 20 years, there have been…