10 July 2014
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death
among Europeans and around the world. The Global Burden of
Disease study estimated that 29.6% of all deaths worldwide
(15 616.1 million deaths) were caused by CVD in 2010, more than
all communicable, maternal, neonatal and nutritional disorders combined,
and double the number of deaths caused by cancers.1 This
paper provides an update for 2014 on the burden of CVD, and in particular
coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, across the countries
of Europe. This overview updates the work published in this
journal in 20132 and provides an up-to-date synopsis of the key
data in relation to mortality and morbidity from CVD across Europe.