Cardiovascular diseases continue to be a leading cause of death in Croatia, and in 2020 when 22,886 people died of these diseases, 57.4% of them were women, the Croatian Heart Foundation and the Croatian Institute of Public Health said on Tuesday ahead of World Heart Day, observed on 29 September.

“Although in the last 20 years Croatia has seen a decline in mortality from cardiovascular diseases, if we compare the number of deaths in 2019 (22,020) and 2020 (22,886), we can see a rise in deaths from cardiovascular diseases by 866 persons. Since there are no detailed studies, it is difficult to say whether this increase was caused by the rise in the number of patients or whether it was the result of of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Verica Kralj, head of the Department for Cardiovascular Diseases at the Croatian Institute of Public Health.

She said that heart patients are more at risk from more serious forms of disease during the pandemic and that many of them, fearing infection, avoid medical checkups or going to hospital and isolate themselves from family and friends.

Kralj said that as many as 80 percent of premature cardiovascular deaths can be avoided by preventive behaviour.