Circulatory Diseases

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Circulatory diseases cause more deaths in Somerset than any other condition type.

The prevalence of cardiovascular disease increases significantly after the age of 40 years. The NHS Health Checks programme in Somerset is a key priority as it focuses on raising awareness of the risk factors for cardiovascular disease and offering individuals support to reduce their future risk.  During  2018/19, 82% of the annual target population were invited to a check and 27% received a check.  In 2019/20 the proportion remained at 27%; this service has been significantly disrupted by covid-19 precautions since then.

Stroke

• In 2017/18 there were 13,335 people in Somerset diagnosed as having had a stroke but the actual figure may be higher.
• During 2017/18 there were 1,287 admissions for stroke of which 117 (9.1%) people had a history of atrial fibrillation but had not been prescribed anticoagulation prior to their stroke.
• Early mortality rates (under 75 years) for strokes in Somerset in 2015-17 were 10.7 per 100,000 people, well below the national rate of 13.1 per 100,000. However over the same period, the stroke mortality rates for those aged over 75 years for Somerset was 572.6 per 100,000 people which was greater than the national rate of 540.5 per 100,000.

Coronary Heart Disease

• In 2017/18, there were 21,897 people in Somerset diagnosed with Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), but based on national data modelled from the Health Survey for England, the true figure could be close to 30,000.
• Early mortality rates for CHD in Somerset in 2015-17 at 29.2/100,000 are significantly lower than the national average of 38.7/100,000 and have fallen significantly since 2004.
• Hospital admission rates in 2017/18 for coronary heart disease for all ages (428.9/100,000) while significantly lower than the national rate (502.4/100,000) increased from 408.5 per 100,000 in 2016/17.

In the latest Cardiovascular Disease Health Profiles , Somerset performs better or is broadly in line with the national average in respect of most indicators.

• In 2016/17 there were 13,045 people in Somerset diagnosed as having had a stroke but the actual figure may be higher.
• Early mortality rates for strokes in Somerset in 2014-16 were 11.1 per 100,000 people, well below the national rate of 13.4 per 100,000.
• In 2016/17, there were 21,554 people in Somerset diagnosed with Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), but based on national data modelled from the Health Survey for England, the true figure could be close to 30,000.
• Early mortality rates for CHD in Somerset in 2014-16 at 30.5/100,000 are significantly lower than the national average of 39.4/100,000 and have fallen by 40% since 2004.
• Hospital admission rates in 2016/17 for coronary heart disease (408.5/100,000) were significantly lower than the national rate (515.8/100,000).

Hypertension Profiles

In January 2016, the National Cardiovascular intellligence network (NCVIN), in partnership with the Public Health England (PHE) blood pressure team, launched a series of Hypertension Profiles for each Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and lower tier local authority.  

The Hypertension Profiles show each local authority how well it is doing in detecting and treating high blood pressure by comparing its performance with that of similar authorities and with the rest of England.   For Somerset, this showed that the number of people estimated to have hypertension to be 155,800.  The proportion diagnosed with hypertension was 57.6%, compared to an England figure of 55.8%.