Cardiovascular Deaths among Persons with Diabetes

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of diabetes-related deaths. Diabetes is rarely coded as the primary cause of death. Diabetes affects the peripheral vascular system and can lead to a heart attack or stroke. According to the American Diabetes Association, two out of three people with diabetes die from a form of heart disease or from a stroke.

• In the U.S. in 2004, approximately 65 percent of all deaths to persons with diabetes were coded as cardiovascular disease deaths as primary cause and not diabetes.
• In Virginia in 2004, approximately 75 percent of all deaths to persons with diabetes were coded as cardiovascular disease deaths.

Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2004; Virginia Center for Health
Statistics, 2004; American Diabetes Association at www.diabetes.org/heart-disease-stroke.jsp.

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