Objective: To describe the current situation and trends of cardiovascular disease burden in China, and the progress and challenges of prevention and control. Methods: The electronic online databases of PubMed, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Wanfang Data were utilized to systematically search published articles in China, the long-term trends of cardiovascular disease prevalence, incidence rate, mortality and disability adjusted life years were systematically reviewed, and the risk factors, population differences and regional distribution characteristics were discussed. Results: From 1990 to 2019, the prevalence and incidence rate of cardiovascular diseases in China increased by 99.75% and 93.75%, respectively. The age-standardized incidence rate showed an upward trend, in contrast to the global downward trend. The burden of subtypes such as ischemic heart disease and stroke continues to increase, particularly in rural areas, the elderly, and the central and western regions; High systolic blood pressure, unhealthy diet, smoking, and air pollution are the main attributable risk factors, contributing over 70% of the disease burden. Conclusion: Although the age-standardized mortality rate and disability adjusted life year rate have decreased, the aging population has offset the intervention effect, and the inflection point of disease burden has not yet appeared. Precise prevention and control strategies need to be implemented for key populations, subtypes, and regions.
- Open Access
- Review Article
Burden and Trends of Cardiovascular Disease in China over the Past 30 Years
Author Information
Received: 26 Apr 2026 | Revised: 28 Jul 2026 | Accepted: 07 Sep 2026 | Published: 24 Sep 2026
Abstract
Keywords
cardiovascular disease | disease burden | prevalence | incidence rate | mortality rate
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