The World Health Organisation (WHO) has identified ischaemic heart disease and stroke as the leading causes of death worldwide, according to its latest report on the top causes of death.
Ischaemic heart disease, which occurs when narrowed or blocked arteries restrict blood flow and oxygen to the heart muscle, was responsible for about 9.5 million deaths in 2023, accounting for 16 per cent of all deaths globally.
Stroke ranked as the second leading cause, claiming about 6.8 million lives, or 11 per cent of global deaths. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) followed in third place, with approximately 3.6 million deaths.
Lower respiratory infections were the fourth leading cause, accounting for 2.7 million deaths, while Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia caused about 2.1 million deaths.
The 10 leading causes of death collectively accounted for 33 million deaths in 2023, representing 54 per cent of the 61 million deaths recorded worldwide that year.
The WHO said cardiovascular diseases remained the leading cause of death and disease burden globally, although significant progress had been made in reducing the impact of ischaemic heart disease in many parts of the world since 2000.
“There has been substantial progress in reducing the burden of ischaemic heart disease since 2000 in many parts of the world,” the report said.
However, it noted that individual risk levels had increased in the WHO Western Pacific and South-East Asia regions, highlighting persistent inequalities in cardiovascular health among populations.
The report also drew attention to the sharp rise in deaths linked to dementia. Dementia became the fifth leading cause of death globally in 2023, up from 19th place in 2000, with deaths attributed to the condition tripling over the period.
