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February is American Heart Month and health experts are putting a spotlight on cardiovascular diseases and the tools available to all Wyomingites to help save lives.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in Wyoming and high blood pressure is one of the leading precursors of life-changing events like heart attack or stroke.

Lisa Salberg, founder and CEO of the nonprofit Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association, said it is important to take a moment and think about your family heart health history.

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"We want to encourage people to look back at their family tree and see if there's any cardiac diagnoses or even symptoms," Salberg explained. "If you have a family history of stroke, you should be discussing [your] family history of stroke with your chosen health care provider."

In 2023, more than 31 percent of Wyoming residents reported being told by a health professional they had high blood pressure, known as a “silent killer” because nearly half of people do not know they have it until they experience negative health effects. Like many other chronic health conditions, high blood pressure can be managed through medicines, diet and exercise.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy causes the heart muscle to thicken. Salberg pointed out there are now medicines available, and defibrillators can be implanted to help resurrect people in seconds in the event of sudden cardiac arrest.

Early detection can help prevent life-threatening events but Salberg stressed fewer than one in five Americans with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy get diagnosed.

"Whether you have Latin ancestry, African ancestry, Caucasian ancestry, it doesn't matter," Salberg added. "One in 200 to one in 500 people have the genetic mutations that cause this disease."

Each year, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests in the U.S. happen outside of hospitals and 90 percent of those are fatal. The real first responder is often a friend, family member or even a nearby stranger.

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation can double or even triple a victim’s chance of survival when performed immediately but currently, just four in 10 people step in to help before a health professional arrives. To learn the basics of how to perform CPR, visit Heart.org/nation.