Disease is linked to age
Older women are much more likely to have CVD, be hospitalised due to CVD, and die from CVD.
In 2016, acute coronary events occurred at a rate of:
- 2,148 per 100,000 women aged 85 and over
- 223 per 100,000 women aged 55–64
- 5 per 100,000 women aged 25–34 (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Acute coronary events among women, by age group, 2016
Sources: AIHW National Hospital Morbidity Database; AIHW National Mortality Database.
CVD hospitalisation rates also increased with age—from 139 per 100,000 females aged under 25, to 13,900 per 100,000 aged 85 and over in 2015–16.
In 2016, nearly 4 in 10 (38%) deaths of women aged 85 and over were due to CVD. But CVD also has a big impact among younger women, accounting for nearly 1 in 10 deaths (8.4%) among females aged under 45.