title: Racial and ethnic differences in premature heart disease deaths in New Mexico: what is the role of diabetes?
abstract: Multiple-cause mortality files from 1999-2001 were obtained to describe premature heart disease (PHD) deaths and the role of diabetes as a contributing cause in heart disease (HD) mortality in American Indians, Hispanics, and non-Hispanic Whites in New Mexico. The proportion and rate of PHD and diabetes-related HD death were calculated and reported by race/ethnicity and gender. Results indicate that from 1999 to 2001, 24% of all deaths in New Mexico reported HD as the leading cause of death. Of these, 16.6% occurred in persons <65 years of age and were therefore classified as premature. The proportion of premature HD deaths was substantially higher in the American-Indian (29.2%) and Hispanic (20.8%) populations compared to Whites (13.7%). Furthermore, diabetes contributed to almost 18% of premature HD deaths in American Indians and Hispanics and to 10% of premature HD among Whites. These findings suggest that American Indians and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by premature HD death and that diabetes as a contributing cause is greater among these populations compared to non-Hispanic Whites.
authors.affiliation: New Mexico Department of Health, Diabetes Program, 1190 St. Francis Drive, S100, Santa Fe, NM 87502, USA. heidi.krapfl@dh.state.nm.us
authors.forename: Heidi R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Krapfl
authors.forename: Dorothy M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Gohdes
authors.forename: Janet B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Croft
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D019992:Databases as Topic; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000401:mortality*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009516:New Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology