Heart disease remains the world’s No. 1 cause of death—and COVID-19 will likely keep it there
Heart disease is still the world’s leading cause of death, according to an updated report from the American Heart Association and National Institutes of Health.
The new analysis, published in full in Circulation, included full data from 2019.
Nearly 18.6 million people died from cardiovascular disease in 2019, according to the report. This is an increase of 17.1% compared to 2010. The age-adjusted death rate per 100,000 people, however, was 239.8—a decrease of 11.1% compared to 2010.
Also, the year included 523.2 million separate cases of cardiovascular disease, an increase of 26.6% compared to 2010. The age-adjusted prevalence rate per 100,000 people, however, was 6,431.6, an increase of just 0.6% compared to 2010.
Looking ahead, the team behind the report is predicting that COVID-19 will keep heart disease as the world’s No. 1 cause of death for quite some time.
“COVID-19 has taken a huge toll on human life worldwide and is on track to become one of the top three to five causes of death in 2020,” wrote Salim S. Virani, MD, PhD, chair of the writing team behind the report and a cardiology professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said in a statement. “But its influence will directly and indirectly impact rates of cardiovascular disease prevalence and deaths for years to come. Research is showing that the unique coronavirus can cause damage to the heart. Importantly, we also know people have delayed getting care for heart attacks and strokes, which can result in poorer outcomes.”
Virani also noted that the social distancing associated with COVID-19 may lead to some potentially negative changes to how people live—yet another way the pandemic is likely to impact the cardiovascular health of individuals all over the world.
“Unhealthy eating habits, increased consumption of alcohol, lack of physical activity and the mental toll of quarantine isolation and even fear of contracting the virus all can adversely impact a person’s risk for cardiovascular health,” he said. “We’ll need to watch and address these trends as the full ramifications will likely be felt for many years to come.”
Read the new report, which comes in at nearly 500 pages in length, here.
Also: Back in December 2020, a report from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation found that COVID-19 had, for at least a while, surpassed ischemic heart disease as the No. 1 cause of death in the United States.
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.