Heart disease ‘leading cause of death’

KUALA LUMPUR: Heart disease has remain­ed the leading cause of death among Malay­sians for 13 years from 2005 to 2017, said Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye.

He said non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension, obesity, and unhealthy diet and lifestyle also contributed to the increase.

“The growing aging population also contributed to the increase of heart patients and with a longer life expectancy, continuous treatment would be required.

“By 2040, it is estimated that the population of Malaysians aged 65 and above will exceed six million, which is 14.5% of the total population.

“This means the burden of coronary heart diseases is also expected to multiply in the near future,” he said.

Dr Lee said the mortality rate increase due to heart disease was also worrying as it had seen a 54% increase over 10 years with 13,503 deaths in 2017 compared to 8,776 in 2007.

“The average age of people getting heart disease in Malaysia is 58, much younger in comparison to other countries. — Bernama