According to the American Heart Association’s 2023 Statistical Update, cardiovascular-related deaths will rise dramatically in 2020, marking the largest single-year increase since 2015 and surpassing the previous record set in 2003.
In the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the largest increases in cardiovascular disease (CVD) deaths were seen among Asians, Blacks, and Hispanics.
Connie Tsao, M.D., chair of the AHA Statistical Update Writing Committee, said: theheart.org| Medscape Cardiology.
Dr. Connie Tsao
However, since 2020, these trends have changed. Beth, who is a staff cardiologist at the Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, said his Tsao had first-hand experience with many clinicians witnessing the change.
“We observed this sharp increase in age-adjusted CVD deaths in response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” she said. So we knew that COVID was hitting patients especially hard. cardiovascular risk factors.”
AHA Stats Update publish online January 25th in the journal circulation.
Data on death
Each year, the American Heart Association and the National Institutes of Health report updated statistics on heart disease. stroke, and cardiovascular risk factors. The 2023 update includes additional information on pandemic-related data.
Overall, the number of deaths from cardiovascular disease increased in the first year of the pandemic, rising from 876,613 in 2019 to 928,741 in 2020. This surpassed her previous high of 910,000 in 2003.
In addition, the age-adjusted mortality rate rose by 4.6% for the first time in years in a “fairly significant” manner, Cao said. Age-adjusted mortality incorporates the inter-annual variability of the elderly population and explains the higher mortality among the elderly.
“Although the total number of deaths has been increasing slowly over the last decade, the age-adjusted mortality rate has declined each year through 2020,” she said. Given the people of all ages undergoing it, I think this is very indicative of what is happening in our country, and in the world, especially before vaccines slow their spread.
The largest increase in CVD-related deaths occurred among Asian, Black, and Hispanic people who were most severely affected in the first year of the pandemic.
Dr. Michelle Albert
“People in communities of color were most affected, especially early on, often due to a disproportionate burden of cardiovascular risk factors, including: high blood pressure When obesitysaid Michelle Albert, MD, MPH, president of the AHA and professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. in a statement.
Albert, who is also director of UCSF’s Center for Adversity and Cardiovascular Disease Research, conducts research on health equity and looks at the imbalances in the 2020 numbers. “Additionally, there are socioeconomic considerations and the continuing impact of systemic racism on multiple factors, such as limiting access to quality health care,” she said.
Other considerations
so Special commentarythe writing committee of Statistics Update noted the need to track data for other underrepresented communities, including LGBTQ people and those living in rural or urban areas. We have outlined several methods to better understand the effects of and social determinants, as well as strategies to reduce cardiovascular-related imbalances.
“This year’s writing groups worked together to gather information on specific social factors associated with health risks and outcomes, including sexual orientation, gender identity, urbanization and socioeconomic status.” said Tsao. “However, these communities are grossly underrepresented in clinical and epidemiological studies, and data are scarce.”
Over the next few years, the AHA Statistical Update will likely contain more insight into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing disparities.
“Certainly, the effects of the pandemic will continue for years to come,” Tsao said. “Recognition of disparities in outcomes among vulnerable groups will inspire action among health care providers and researchers, government and policy leaders to investigate the reasons and make changes to reverse these trends. It has to be something.”
Statistical update was prepared by a volunteer writing group on behalf of the American Heart Association Council on Epidemiology and Prevention Statistics Subcommittee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee.
circulation. Published online on January 25, 2023. full text
Carolyn Crist is a health and medical journalist reporting on the latest research for Medscape, MDedge and WebMD.
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