Cardiovascular Disease Ranks as Global #1 Killer

It is estimated that 59 million people died throughout the world during 2004 with cardiovascular diseases being the leading cause of death. Cardiovascular diseases affect the heart and blood vessels and lead to heart attacks and stroke. Simply eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, and avoiding the use of tobacco could prevent 80 percent or more of all premature deaths from cardiovascular heart disease and stroke.

Tobacco use is a leading yet preventable root of cardiovascular disease that causes the death of almost one in 10 adults throughout the world. Smoking also causes chronic obstructive lung disease and lung cancer. In fact smoking is the cause of over 80 percent of all lung cancers in developing countries.

The increasing percentage of aging people in the population is another contributing factor to the increase of heart disease and cancer, especially in developing countries.

In 2004 alone, 7.2 million people died of coronary heart disease, 5.7 million from stroke or other form of cerebrovascular disease (brain dysfunctions related to disease of blood vessels supplying the brain).

This information comes from the new assessment of the global burden of disease 2004 update provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). The study is a comprehensive evaluation of the health of the world's population and provides detailed global and regional estimates of premature mortality, disability and loss of health for 135 causes by age and sex.

The report data comes from extensive WHO databases as well as from information provided by Member States. The report also lists the top 10 causes of death and provides projections of deaths and burden of disease by cause and region up to the year 2030.

The WHO report explains the main differences between high, middle and low-income countries regarding most common causes of death. In high-income countries, over 66 percent of people have a life expectancy beyond the age of 70 whereas less than half of all people in middle-income countries live to the age of 70 and less than 25 percent ever reach age 70 in low-income countries.

Those who live in high-income countries and middle-income countries predominantly die of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive lung disease, cancers, diabetes or dementia. Lung infection is the only leading infectious cause of death for high-income areas and tuberculosis as well as road traffic accidents are leading causes of death in middle-income areas.

In low-income countries, however, over one third of all deaths are among children under 14 years of age. People predominantly die of infectious diseases such as lung infections, diarrhoeal diseases, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. In addition, both complications of pregnancy and childbirth remain leading causes of death with the loss of the lives of both infants and mothers.

In 2004, there were over 10 million deaths among children under the age of five, with 99 percent of them located in low and middle-income countries. Mal-nutrition is responsible for at least 30 percent of deaths of all children under age five. Almost 20 million children worldwide are severely malnourished.

In Africa, HIV/AIDS is still the leading cause of adult death despite significant progress in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS. This is primarily due to the continued lack of access to health services. Weak health care systems and the shortage of human resources remain to be major obstacles in improving care.

The WHO reported that over 3500 people die in road traffic crashes daily while millions more are injured or disabled for life. The WHO projects that road traffic injuries will increase from the ninth leading cause of death globally in 2004, to the fifth in 2030. Many of these accidents are preventable by practicing road safety by wearing helmets and seat belts, driving within the speed limit and not driving under the influence of alcohol.

The top ten global leading causes of death are listed in the report as coronary heart disease, stroke and other cerebrovascular diseases, lower respiratory infections, perinatal conditions, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diarrhoeal diseases, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, trachea, bronchus, lung cancers, and road traffic accidents.

Among the 20 leading causes of worldwide disabilities are hearing loss, vision problems and mental disorders such as depression. Although these disabilities have major impacts on people's lives, most are easily treatable including removing cataracts to improve vision and providing hearing aids to improve hearing quality. The high overall rates of these disorders show a need for better access to intervention so that help people can live productively. Depression alone affects approximately 120 million people across the globe and projections show an expected increase. Yet, less than 25 of people who suffer from depression have access to adequate treatment and health care.

WHO expert and lead author of the report, Colin Mathers, said, “It is vital that we have a global and regional picture of deaths, disease and disability.” He went on to explain, “This study enables policy-makers and countries to identify the gaps and ensure that help and efforts are directed to those who are most in need. The countries can use the information to create strategies and cost-effective interventions aimed at improving health across the world.”