Inequalities in care delivery and outcomes for myocardial infarction, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and aortic stenosis in the United Kingdom

Ramesh Nadarajah*, Maryum Farooq, Keerthenan Raveendra, Yoko M. Nakao, Kazuhiro Nakao, Chris Wilkinson, Jianhua Wu, Chris P. Gale

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of death and disability globally, with inequalities in burden and care delivery evident in Europe. To address this challenge, The Lancet Regional Health—Europe convened experts from a range of countries to summarise the current state of knowledge on cardiovascular disease inequalities across Europe. This Series paper presents evidence from nationwide secondary care registries and primary care healthcare records regarding inequalities in care delivery and outcomes for myocardial infarction, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and aortic stenosis in the National Health Service (NHS) across the United Kingdom (UK) by age, sex, ethnicity and geographical location. Data suggest that women and older people less frequently receive guideline-recommended treatment than men and younger people. There are limited publications about ethnicity in the UK for the studied disease areas. Finally, there is inter-healthcare provider variation in cardiovascular care provision, especially for transcatheter aortic valve implantation, which is associated with differing outcomes for patients with the same disease. Providing equitable care is a founding principle of the UK NHS, which is well positioned to deliver innovative policy responses to reverse observed inequalities. Understanding differences in care may enable the implementation of appropriate strategies to mitigate differences in outcomes.

Original languageEnglish
Article number100719
Number of pages12
JournalThe Lancet Regional Health - Europe
Volume33
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2023

Bibliographical note

© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd

Keywords

  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Care delivery
  • Death
  • Disparities

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