Heart Disease Mortality in the United States, 1970 to 2022 is a study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. “From 1970 to 2022, overall age‐adjusted heart disease mortality decreased by 66% from 1970 to 2022 (from 761 to 258 per 100 000). In 1970, 91% of all heart disease deaths were ischemic, declining to 53% of all heart disease deaths in 2022. From 1970 to 2022, age‐adjusted mortality decreased by 89% for acute myocardial infarction (from 354 to 40 per 100 000) and 81% for all ischemic heart disease (from 693 to 135 per 100 00). In contrast, from 1970 to 2022 age‐adjusted mortality for other heart disease subtypes increased by 81% (from 68 to 123 per 100 000), with the greatest increases in heart failure (146% increase), hypertensive heart disease (106% increase) and arrhythmias (450% increase).”
This effect is due entirely to the success in treating ischemic heart disease – ie, mortality due to blockage of coronary arteries. As nature abhors a vacuum, mortality due to other forms of heart disease has increased. Such disorders include hypertensive heart disease, heart failure, and arrhythmias. If one thing doesn’t kill you, another will – eventually. Thus, the decline in morality from coronary artery disease is associated with a longer life expectancy. The finding is good news, but not a step toward immortality.
The entire study can be downloaded below. Its findings are summarized in the figure just below this paragraph.
Absolute cardiac mortality is shown in panel A and age‐adjusted mortality in panel B. Mortality for ischemic heart disease (acute myocardial infarction is depicted in bright red, while chronic ischemic heart disease is shown in dark red. Other heart disease is in blue. The data are from 1970 to 2022 in the United States.
Future efforts will be directed against mortality due to heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, and arrhythmias, particularly atrial fibrillation. It’s doubtful that such efforts, however successful, can be as dramatic as those which have so vividly reduced deaths from ischemic heart disease. Inevitably, as mortality from heart disease goes down, deaths from other causes will go up. This will be most apparent in cancer mortality. But these deaths will be at a later age and accordingly be associated with an increase in life expectancy.
