Summary

Linked hospitalisation and mortality data from Western Australia were used to calculate the prevalence of heart failure. Use of this linked data allows individuals to be followed over time, giving a more accurate estimate of prevalence, as individuals with multiple  hospitalisations are only counted once and people who have died are excluded. This measure of prevalence has the advantage of being based on clinical diagnoses rather than self-reported information, but it may miss less severe cases that do not result in hospitalisation.