Cardiovascular Disease Mortality — China, 2019

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death and has caused a heavy burden in China. China has about 106 million CVD patients, including 33 million with stroke. This study presents the latest cardiovascular mortality in China in 2019 to provide evidence for disease control and prevention. Methods: Mortality data from the China Death Surveillance Point System (DSP System) was used for CVD mortality estimation. A descriptive analysis was conducted to demonstrate the results. Results: A total of 5.09 million CVD deaths were estimated in China in 2019, with a mortality rate and age-standardized mortality rate of 364.5 per 100,000 population and 276.0 per 100,000, respectively. Stroke is the leading cause of death, and the mortality rate and age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) were 171.6 per 100,000 and 130.0 per 100,000, respectively. The second major cause was ischemic heart diseases, and the mortality rate and ASMR were 147.3 per 100,000 and 142.1 per 100,000, respectively. Stroke and ischemic heart diseases were the two major causes of CVD deaths, which accounted for over 87% of all CVD deaths. Conclusions: Although age-standardized mortality of CVD continues to decline in China, the number of deaths is still increasing. Therefore, prevention and control efforts for CVD should be maintained. In order to achieve the “Healthy China 2030” goal of reducing the mortality rate of CVD in China, it is necessary to further strengthen the prevention, control, and treatment capacity of stroke. Meanwhile, increases in ischemic heart disease deaths in highly developed areas should be monitored.