Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)

Cardiovascular disease (CVD is a group of conditions — coronary artery disease, heart attack, stroke, hypertension — affecting the heart and blood vessels. It typically involves such processes as atherosclerosis (buildup of plaque in arterial walls), impaired blood flow, and damage to vascular function. In the context of serious mental illness (SMI), cardiovascular disease is now recognized as a major and often underappreciated contributor to illness burden and reduced life expectancy. A substantial body of research has shown that people living with conditions — such as major depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia — experience significantly higher rates of cardiovascular disease and tend to develop it earlier than the general population. This connection is understood as multifactorial. Traditional risk factors — smoking, reduced physical activity, sleep disruption, metabolic side effects of some psychiatric medications — play an important role. At the same time, emerging research points to shared underlying biological pathways, including chronic low-grade inflammation, dysregulation of stress-response systems, and changes in metabolic and vascular function. Increasingly, cardiovascular disease in SMI is being reframed not as a separate, coincidental condition, but as part of a broader, interconnected pattern of whole-body dysregulation that bridges mental and physical health.