The epidemiology of ischaemic heart disease in the different ethnic populations in Johannesburg

Abstract

From an examination of death certificates of members of different ethnic populations in Johannesburg who have died of ischaemic heart disease (IHD), age-specific mortality rates have been calculated. The period examined in the case of Whites was 1971; in the case of Indians and Coloureds it was 1968-1971 (because of the smaller sizes of the populations); and in the case of Blacks 1968-1971 (because of the small number dying from IHD). Notable findings included: (i) an extremely high mortality rate among Whites (especially among the Jewish sector, undoubtedly the highest extant); (ii) an equally high or higher rate among Indians, a feature which also prevails in Indian immigrant populations elsewhere; (iii) a lower rate among Coloureds; and (iv) an extremely low rate among Blacks, as is also the case among other Black African populations. Comparative information is provided on IHD in other populations.