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Go to the
2004
Health Status Report update This update supplements the 2000 Health Status Report by providing updated information for many aspects of the health of our region. |
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In the 1990’s about thirty-eight percent of deaths in Canada were due to cardiovascular diseases. In Leeds, Grenville and Lanark (LGL) about 39% of all deaths in 1996 were due to cardiovascular diseases. Ischemic heart disease (IHD), was responsible for about 60% of these deaths. Of the remaining cardiovascular disease deaths, stroke, other heart diseases and hypertensive diseases accounted for 20%, 12%, and 1% respectively. In addition to being the leading cause of death in LGL, IHD was also the leading cause of hospitalizations in the region. In 1997, 13% of all hospitalizations among males, and 10% of hospitalizations among females were due to IHD. Gender differences in cardiovascular
disease are well documented. Men experience almost
twice the death rates of women in all categories
of cardiovascular diseases except stroke, for
which the rates are approximately equal for both
sexes and all ages. For every year except 1986 in
LGL, the total death rate from IHD was higher in
men than in women (see
figure 1). For stroke the
opposite has been true. For every
year between 1981 and 1996 the crude mortality
rate for stroke has been higher among women than
men in LGL (see
figure 2). Although the age-standardized cardiovascular disease mortality rates in men are more than double those in women, in the final analysis, almost as many women die from cardiovascular diseases as men. In LGL, for example, 309 men and 302 women died from cardiovascular diseases in 1996. This apparent paradox is the result of the older average age of death of women and the high cardiovascular disease mortality rates in the older age groups. Between 1994 and 1996, 44% of all deaths in women were due to cardiovascular diseases compared to 42% of all deaths in men. Among women, the number of deaths increases sharply after menopause, while in men, the percentage increases steadily from age 35 to age 84. Among both sexes, rates increase dramatically in the older age groups. Although cardiovascular disease death rates have been declining steadily in Canada since the mid-1950's, the prevalence of, and the absolute number of deaths due to cardiovascular diseases will likely increase in the coming decades as the proportion of elderly (over 65 years) within the population increases (see figure 3). Cardiovascular disease death rates have been declining steadily in Ontario since the mid-1950's (see figure 4). The 1995 death rates are almost half those of 1969; this applies to all major categories of cardiovascular diseases, and to rates among both men and women. However, deaths in LGL from cardiovascular disease remain higher than in Ontario. Between 1994-1996, mortality from all circulatory diseases combined and ischemic heart disease was significantly higher in LGL than Ontario, for both men (see figure 5) and women (see figure 8b). Although stroke in Canada is responsible for 7% of all deaths, the Canadian death rate from stroke is among the lowest in the world. Death rates from stroke have declined at approximately 2% per year since the 1950's (see figure 6). In spite of fact that mortality rates due to stroke are lower now than they were in the early 1980's, in more recent years (since 1990) the age-standardized mortality rates due to stroke have been increasing in LGL (see figure 7). In LGL, between 1994-1996 stroke accounted for 12% of all deaths in women and 8% of all deaths in men. The death rate from stroke is closely related to the prevalence of high blood pressure (see figure 8) and smoking in the population. Data definitions, limitations
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