Primary and secondary prevention in cardiovascular disease: an old-fashioned concept?

Objective. Is the concept of primary and secondary cardiovascular prevention an old-fashioned concept that needs to be re-defined? Design. Discussion paper. Results. Cardiovascular prevention means reduction of absolute risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), irrespective of clinical stage. Conclusion. For the calculation of an individual probability to develop CVD all factors that contribute to the risk must be taken into account, including previous CVD events.