Editing Polypill (section)

====Treating cardiovascular disease====
One of the first recommended roles of a polypill was as a means of providing recommended medications to people with heart disease, stroke and other forms of cardiovascular disease. Most cardiovascular disease patients do not receive recommended medications long-term: the proportion of cardiovascular disease patients ''not ''receiving a statin, aspirin and blood pressure lowering medication long-term ranges from about 50% in high income countries to over 90% in low income countries.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Yusuf S |author2=Islam S |author3=Chow CK |author4=Rangarajan S |author5=Dagenais G |author6=Diaz R | year = 2011 | title = Use of secondary prevention drugs for cardiovascular disease in the community in high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries (the PURE Study): a prospective epidemiological survey | journal = Lancet | volume = 378 | issue = 9798| pages = 1231–43 | pmid = 21872920 | doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(11)61215-4|display-authors=etal}}</ref> In 2001, a World Health Organization and The Wellcome Trust meeting of experts to discuss interventions for non-communicable diseases noted “the use of a single pill could well encourage patients to adhere to treatment as well as seriously reduce the cost of the drugs”<ref>World Health Organization(2002) Secondary prevention of non-communicable disease in low and middleincome countries through community-based and health service interventions. World Health Organization - Wellcome Trust meeting report 1–3 August 2001, Geneva. http://www.who.int/cardiovascular_diseases/media/en/615.pdf</ref> A programme of research was outlined, including stability and bio-availability testing followed by assessment of short-term effects on blood pressure, cholesterol, platelet aggregation, safety and side effects. In 2002, the World Health Organization Annual Report outlined the substantial potential public health impact and cost-effectiveness of scaling up access to combination cardiovascular treatment<ref>World Health Organization(2002) The World Health Report 2002. Reducing risks, promoting healthy life.;WHO, editor. Geneva: WHO. [https://web.archive.org/web/20021202073217/http://www.who.int/whr/2002/en/]</ref> and an editorial in ''The Lancet'' noted that a four component combination pill would reduce cardiovascular risk by about 75% among people with vascular disease.<ref>{{cite journal | author = Yusuf S | year = 2002 | title = Two decades ofprogress in preventing vascular disease | journal = Lancet | volume = 360 | issue = 9326| pages = 2–3 | doi=10.1016/s0140-6736(02)09358-3 | pmid=12114031| s2cid = 33042777 }}</ref>