Bellin Health and the Green Bay Packers are working to promote American Heart Month in a variety of ways during the month of February.
As of Feb. 1, the regular lighting above the Bellin Health Gate has been replaced with red lighting in an effort to further awareness in the community and to show support for the cause. The red lighting at the Bellin Health Gate serves as a reminder to area residents and visitors at Lambeau Field to keep heart health top-of-mind.
The month-long focus on heart health is used to create general awareness of heart disease in communities across the U.S.
Bellin will create awareness of a special screening test that helps measure the risk of heart disease. The test measures the amount of hard plaque buildup in the four coronary arteries. Plaque buildup can lead to heart disease if left unchecked. The test, called a calcium screen, is read by a cardiologist. A radiologist reads the chest CT scan portion of the test. Screening results range from zero (no plaque in arteries) to greater than 400 (high risk for heart disease).
“The $50 calcium screen test will go a long way toward easing people’s concerns about their heart health,” said Andrea Werner, vice president, Bellin Heart, Lung and Vascular Center. “We want members of the public to clearly understand the status of their cardiovascular health.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
• Every year, about 720,000 Americans have a heart attack
• About 600,000 people die from heart disease in the United States each year – that’s 1 out of every 4 deaths
• Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women
For more information about the calcium screening, call Bellin Health at (920) 445-7373.
