Nearly 100,000 people have died needlessly from heart attack and stroke since the start of the pandemic, according to a report.
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) said the ongoing disruption to the NHS and the fallout from Covid has left the country in the ‘throes of a heart and stroke care emergency’.
The analysis of official data showed that as of March 2020 there have been more deaths related to cardiovascular disease than any other disease – with 96,540.
It means there have been more than 500 extra deaths per week since the start of the pandemic above what would be expected for heart disease.
The charity has called for heart care to be urgently prioritised, while also taking steps to reduce growing preventive risk factors such as obesity.
Excess deaths in England with cardiovascular disease (any death certificate entry), compared to deaths where the underlying cause was Covid and where cardiovascular disease was also reported on the death certificate. Red line refers to extra deaths with CVD. Blue lines represent deaths where the underlying cause was Covid, and where CVD was also listed on the death certificate
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Dr. Charmaine Griffiths, general manager of the BHF, said: It is deeply disturbing that so many more people have died from cardiovascular disease in the last three years.
“For years it has been clear that we are firmly in the grip of a heart and stroke healthcare crisis.
“If little changes, we could continue to see a sustained rise in cardiovascular death rates that negates decades of scientific progress to reduce the number of people who die from heart attack or stroke.”
More than half of the excess CVD deaths occurred during the first year of the pandemic, with Covid known to cause significant heart and circulatory problems.
Data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) showed that in the second year, between 2021/March 22, they fell dramatically, but recovered in the same period last year.
Experts said ongoing disruption to NHS heart care is likely behind the spike, with record waiting lists and disruption from strikes leading to further treatment delays.
This is on top of the extra increased risk of heart attack and stroke caused by Covid.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, Associate Medical Director at the BHF and Consultant Cardiologist, said: “Covid-19 no longer fully explains the high number of excess deaths from cardiovascular disease. Other important factors are likely to contribute, including the extreme and unrelenting pressure on the NHS in recent years.
“Long waits for heart care are dangerous — they put a person at increased risk for avoidable hospitalization, disability from heart failure, and premature death. Yet people are struggling to get potentially life-saving heart treatments when they need them due to a lack of NHS staff and space, despite cardiovascular disease affecting a record number of people.’
The number of people waiting for time-sensitive heart care hit a record high of nearly 390,000 at the end of April, the latest figures show.
While ambulance response times have improved since the 90-minute low in December 2022, average wait times consistently exceeded 30 minutes last year.
Meanwhile, detection rates of conditions that put people at higher risk of disease have fallen.
Figures from NHS England show that 2 million fewer people were registered with controlled hypertension in 2021 compared to the previous year.
Research has shown that people with no pre-existing heart disease who contracted Covid prior to the vaccine rollout were 40 percent more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, while those who experienced a serious infection were at a higher risk.
Professor John Greenwood, president of the British Cardiovascular Society, said the figures are ‘worrying, but unfortunately not surprising’.
He said: ‘We know that Covid has caused direct (Covid leads to new CVD), indirect (reduced treatment and prevention of CVD) and long-term effects (CVD and Long Covid).
“The BCS recommends urgent prioritization of CVD prevention and treatment, as well as an increase in the cardiovascular workforce (primary and secondary care and multidisciplinary team) to address work backlogs and long waiting lists for treatment. In addition, we need a strong public health strategy from the government to promote healthy behaviors and prevent heart disease in the first place.”
A government spokesman said: ‘We are cutting waiting lists, ambulance response times are getting shorter, staff are increasing and we are improving access to blood pressure and health checks.
“We know there’s more to do, so we’re discussing a strategy for key conditions to address cardiovascular disease – including stroke and diabetes – and we’ve opened 108 community diagnostic centers that have more than 4 million tests, scans and checkups.” have provided, including for those with cardiovascular disease.
‘The government is also working with NHS England to fight some causes of cardiovascular disease, with programs to support more physical activity, reduce obesity and encourage people to stop smoking.’