100 - Other heart disease
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 April 2023
Summary
This category includes types of heart disease not included elsewhere; two thirds of deaths in this group are due to heart failure.
See also Map 84 Heart attack and chronic heart disease.
Five large clusters are clear: urban western Scotland; urban north west England; within the West Midlands conurbation; the western parts of the Welsh valleys; and west Inner London. In contrast eastern Scotland, east of the Pennines, the East Midlands, Bristol ( just east of Wales) and the outer south east all record lower than average rates. Other than in these extreme places, that is for most of the country, rates are very close to average and show little geographical variation.
Heart failure refers to the heart not being able to fill with blood or to pump sufficient blood through the body. It can affect the left side of the heart, the right side, or both. Heart failure on the left side can lead to breathlessness. Failure on the right side can cause swollen ankles and legs.
The age–sex bar chart for this cause is very similar to that for the previous three causes mapped, with higher numbers of elderly women succumbing to this form of mortality. This is not surprising as coronary heart disease underlies much heart failure.
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- The Grim Reaper's Road MapAn Atlas of Mortality in Britain, pp. 202 - 203Publisher: Bristol University PressPrint publication year: 2008