Functioning and disability in patients with cardiovascular disease within the ICF classification framework: Proposals for using ICF to classify functioning and disability in patients with cardiovascular disease

According to data from the Italian Ministry of Health, cardiovascular disease represents the leading cause of death in Italy, being responsible for 44% of all deaths.More specifically, ischemic heart disease is the first cause (28% of total deaths) and cerebrovascular conditions are the third cause (13% of all deaths). In countries in the European Union, heart disease causes the death of approximately 1.5 million people - this is 42%, or a little less than half, of all deaths - and stroke causes 25% of all deaths [1]. A similar situation is found in the United States, where heart disease accounts for about 930, 000 deaths every year, or, 40% of the total deaths [2].