Changing pattern of heart diseases in Shanghai from the 1950s to 1980s.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the pattern of dynamic change in types of heart diseases in the past 4 decades for providing a reference to treatment and prevention of heart diseases in China.


METHODS
All adult cardiac patients admitted to the Zhong Shan Hospital and Hua Shan Hospital from 1948 to 1989 were analyzed. The constituent ratio of different heart diseases in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s was compared.


RESULTS
The percentage of heart diseases among medical inpatients increased in each of the recent 4 decades, from 9.89%, 15.69%, 20.90% to 23.54% respectively. The constituent ratio of different heart diseases changed, coronary heart disease constituted the highest proportion, next came rheumatic heart disease, and congenital heart disease was in third place. Congenital heart disease, myocarditis, cardiac dysrhythmia without organic heart disease, cardiomyopathy and endocarditis increased, rheumatic heart disease, pulmonary heart disease and hypertensive heart disease apparently decreased; syphilitic heart disease could rarely be encountered.


CONCLUSIONS
China is now facing a low overall death rate, a long life expectancy and an aging population. The incidence of heart diseases increased gradually and patterns of heart diseases kept changing. The overall trend is that heart diseases which were not related to infection are increasing while heart diseases related to bacterial infection are decreasing.
Chen
H
H
Zhong Shan Hospital, Shanghai Medical University and Shanghai Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Shanghai, China.
Fan
W
W
Jin
X
X
Wang
Q
Q
Pan
X
X
Chen
X
X
Wang
M
M
Dai
R
R
Cao
Y
Y
Li
B
B
D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000453:epidemiology; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D011660:Pulmonary Heart Disease / Q000453:epidemiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012214:Rheumatic Heart Disease / Q000453:epidemiology