ĐÀ NẴNG — The central city of Đà Nẵng has put into operation its first cardiovascular centre after three years of construction, offering services and treatment for patients from the city as well as the central and Central Highlands provinces.

The 10-storey centre, which was built on an area of 3,560sq.m on downtown Hải Phòng Street with an investment of VNĐ236 billion (US$11.23 million), will provide cardiovascular examinations, treatment and surgeries for in-patients with 200 beds.

Director of Đà Nẵng General Hospital Lê Đức Nhân said the introduction of the centre will provide more chances for heart disease patients in central Việt Nam. Most cardiovascular patients in the region are currently sent to Huế General Hospital – the only premium cardiology centre in the region – for treatment or surgeries.

Nhân said the centre will secure more investment in the second stage for better service and treatment for patients in the near future.

A doctor performs a heart check-up for a child in a hospital in Đà Nẵng. — VNS Photo Ngọc Oanh

According to the Việt Nam Heart Association, 450 in 1,000 people in the city of Đà Nẵng have high blood pressure, also known as hypertension.

According to the Việt Nam National Heart Association, 25 per cent of the Vietnamese population aged more than 25 years suffers from hypertension and heart disease. It said the elevated level is due to over-consumption of fatty food and alcoholic drinks.

The central and Central Highlands region has been struggling with a lack of understanding of basic cardiovascular health and hypertension in communities, deficient funding for preventive programmes and a lack of up-to-date facilities for treating heart disease.

Đà Nẵng has 11 hospitals, four of which meet international standards, with 1,000 doctors and more than 620 consulting rooms and care centres.

Doctors from Hoàn Mỹ-Đà Nẵng hospital said 57,000 children had received heart screenings at the hospital in 2017 and 2018. 900 were diagnosed with congenital heart disease.

More than 1,600 patients were given cardiovascular surgeries at Đà Nẵng General Hospital between 2013 and 2016. — VNS