Luxembourg and France are top for European heart care

LONDON (Reuters) - Luxembourg and France topped a European survey on Thursday that ranks countries by the quality of cardiovascular care.

Romania and Bulgaria came last, highlighting the fact that money counts when it comes to heart care.

Health Consumer Powerhouse, a private company, said its survey demonstrated that comprehensive prevention programs -- such as screening for cardiovascular risks and helping smokers quit -- paid dividends for both governments and patients.

"By denying patients proper preventive care, countries put patients at risk and at the same time undermine the effectiveness of their healthcare expenditure," said research director Dr Arne Bjornberg.

Screening programs around Europe were generally found to be inadequate and there was also widespread under-use of medications such as cholesterol-lowering statin drugs and Sanofi-Aventis's blood thinner Plavix, despite well-accepted guidelines.

The survey measured a number of factors in assessing the overall level of cardiovascular care, including patient rights, access to treatment, prevention, procedures and clinical outcomes.

The full ranking was as follows:

1. Luxembourg

2. France