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  • Review Article
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Epidemiology of cardiovascular disease in Europe

Nature Reviews Cardiology volume 19, pages 133–143 (2022)Cite this article

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Abstract

This Review presents data describing the health burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) within and across the WHO European Region. CVD remains the most common cause of death in the region. Deaths from CVD in those aged <70 years, commonly referred to as premature, are a particular concern, with >60 million potential years of life lost to CVD in Europe annually. Although more women than men die from CVD, age-standardized rates of both morbidity and death are higher in men, and these differences in rates are greatest in individuals aged <70 years. Large inequalities in all measures of morbidity, treatment and mortality can be found between countries across the continent and must be a focus for improving health. Large differences also exist in the data available between countries. The development and implementation of evidence-based preventive and treatment approaches must be supported in all countries by consistent surveillance and monitoring, such that we can quantify the health burden of CVD as well as target interventions and provide impetus for action across Europe.

Key points

  • Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the most common cause of death in the European region.

  • More than 60 million potential years of life are lost to CVD in Europe annually.

  • More women than men die from CVD in Europe.

  • Age-standardized rates of both morbidity and death from CVD are higher in men than in women.

  • Deaths from cancer exceeded those from CVD in 15 of the 53 European region countries for men and in six countries for women.

  • Large disparities in data coverage and in country-level morbidity, treatment outcomes and mortality from CVD exist across Europe.

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Fig. 1: Percentage of deaths from CVD and cancer in Europe.
Fig. 2: Percentage of premature deaths from CVD in Europe.
Fig. 3: Age-standardized mortality from CVD in Europe.
Fig. 4: Crude premature mortality from CVD in Europe.
Fig. 5: Age-standardized incidence of CVD in Europe.
Fig. 6: Number and crude rates of discharges from hospitalization for CVD in Europe.

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Acknowledgements

The authors write on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Atlas of Cardiology Publication Committee. The authors acknowledge the members of the ESC Health Policy Unit, Brussels, and the ESC Atlas of Cardiology Publication Committee for their work in compiling the data used in this Review.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, UK

    Nick Townsend

  2. European Society of Cardiology Health Policy Unit, European Heart Health Institute, Brussels, Belgium

    Denis Kazakiewicz, Adam Timmis, Radu Huculeci, Stephan Achenbach, Franz Weidinger & Panos Vardas

  3. Nuffield Department of Population Health, Big Data Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

    F. Lucy Wright

  4. The William Harvey Research Institute, Queen Mary University, London, UK

    Adam Timmis

  5. Centre for Research on Health and Social Care Management (CERGAS), Bocconi University, Milan, Italy

    Aleksandra Torbica

  6. Leeds Institute for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK

    Chris P. Gale

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N.T., D.K., F.L.W., A. Timmis, R.H., A. Torbica, C.P.G. and P.V. researched data for the article and contributed substantially to discussion of the content. All the authors wrote the article and reviewed and/or edited the manuscript before submission.

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European Health for All database: https://gateway.euro.who.int/en/datasets/european-health-for-all-database/

GBD study: http://ghdx.healthdata.org/

WHO Mortality Database: https://www.who.int/data/data-collection-tools/who-mortality-database

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Townsend, N., Kazakiewicz, D., Lucy Wright, F. et al. Epidemiology of cardiovascular disease in Europe. Nat Rev Cardiol 19, 133–143 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41569-021-00607-3

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