Who dies of high blood pressure & other circulatory disease?
In the median of the 36 countries that publish causes of death by age, 6.2% of men and 8.0% of women eventually die of high blood pressure & other circulatory disease. It is the most likely cause of death in 36 of their 1,152 country, sex and age groups.
The risk by age
Chance of dying of high blood pressure & other circulatory disease within 10 years, and its share of all the risk at that age — the median of 36 countries. Your own country's numbers are one click away on its page.
| Age | men | women |
|---|---|---|
| 15–19 | <0.01% (0.77% of the risk) | <0.01% (1.9% of the risk) |
| 20–24 | <0.01% (1.5% of the risk) | <0.01% (2.0% of the risk) |
| 25–29 | 0.02% (2.1% of the risk) | 0.01% (2.3% of the risk) |
| 30–34 | 0.03% (2.4% of the risk) | 0.02% (2.8% of the risk) |
| 35–39 | 0.05% (3.1% of the risk) | 0.03% (3.2% of the risk) |
| 40–44 | 0.09% (3.8% of the risk) | 0.05% (3.1% of the risk) |
| 45–49 | 0.16% (4.3% of the risk) | 0.06% (3.0% of the risk) |
| 50–54 | 0.27% (4.4% of the risk) | 0.10% (3.4% of the risk) |
| 55–59 | 0.37% (4.3% of the risk) | 0.19% (3.8% of the risk) |
| 60–64 | 0.59% (4.1% of the risk) | 0.35% (4.4% of the risk) |
| 65–69 | 1.0% (4.5% of the risk) | 0.71% (5.4% of the risk) |
| 70–74 | 1.8% (5.2% of the risk) | 1.6% (6.7% of the risk) |
| 75–79 | 3.0% (5.8% of the risk) | 3.1% (7.8% of the risk) |
| 80–84 | 4.9% (6.8% of the risk) | 5.9% (8.8% of the risk) |
| 85–89 | 6.5% (7.4% of the risk) | 8.2% (9.6% of the risk) |
| 90–94 | 7.6% (8.0% of the risk) | 9.8% (10% of the risk) |
Where it's the most likely cause of death
- Men 70–74: Estonia
- Men 75–79: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Men 80–84: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Men 85–89: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Men 90–94: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Women 55–59: Estonia
- Women 60–64: Estonia
- Women 65–69: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Women 70–74: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Women 75–79: Croatia, Estonia, Romania
- Women 80–84: Croatia, Estonia, Italy, Romania
- Women 85–89: Croatia, Estonia, Italy, Romania
- Women 90–94: Croatia, Estonia, Italy, Romania
Lifetime chance, men: highest and lowest countries
Lifetime chance, women: highest and lowest countries
What changes the odds
- In large cohort studies, people who smoke died of it about 2.6 times as often as people who never smoked (Carter 2015).
What you can do
- Have your blood pressure checked regularly and treated if it's high.
- Eat less salt.
- Men 65 and over who have ever smoked: a one-off ultrasound finds an aortic aneurysm before it can burst.
Act fast: Sudden severe pain in the tummy or back, with dizziness or fainting: call your emergency number.
Sources: 2024 ESC Guidelines on elevated blood pressure and hypertension; 2024 ESC Guidelines on peripheral arterial and aortic diseases. General guidance, not medical advice.
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Related: Heart attack & coronary heart disease · Heart failure & other heart disease · Stroke
Questions
- At what age is high blood pressure & other circulatory disease most likely to be the cause of death?
- For men, high blood pressure & other circulatory disease takes its largest share of deaths at 90–94: 8.0% of the risk of dying in the next 10 years, in the median of the 36 countries that publish causes of death by age.
- Which country has the highest risk of dying of high blood pressure & other circulatory disease?
- Of the 36 countries that publish causes of death by age, Romania has the highest lifetime chance of dying of high blood pressure & other circulatory disease for men (17%), and Malta the lowest (2.6%).
- What raises the risk of dying of high blood pressure & other circulatory disease?
- In large cohort studies, people who smoke died of it about 2.6 times as often as people who never smoked (Carter 2015).
Computed by Odainn from official mortality statistics (Eurostat; ONS, NRS and NISRA; CDC; Statistics Canada) for 36 countries, latest years — how we calculate. Belarus is left out: deaths by cause and age aren't published together there, so the split by cause is our estimate. Population statistics, not a prediction for any individual. Educational, not medical advice.