ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Aging and Public Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1645351
This article is part of the Research TopicExploring Sex-Specific Cardiovascular Health: Risk Factors and Molecular InsightsView all articles
Reversed Sex Disparities in Heart Failure Mortality in Spain, 2000-2023: A Population-Based Analysis of Older Adults
Provisionally accepted
- 1Department of Public Health and Psychiatry, Universidad de Malaga Facultad de Medicina, Málaga, Spain
- 2Cardiology Service, Hospital Universitario Costa del Sol, Marbella, Spain
- 3Instituto de Investigacion biomédica de Málaga. IBIMA Plataforma Bionand, Malaga, Spain
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Background and Objectives: Heart failure (HF) is a growing public health concern in Spain, ranking as the third leading cause of cardiovascular mortality and contributing substantially to hospitalizations and outpatient visits. Clinical presentation, pathophysiology, therapeutic response, and healthcare access differ significantly between sexes. This study analyzes trends in HF mortality in Spain from 2000 to 2023, with a specific focus on sex-based disparities.We conducted a population-based descriptive analysis of annual HF mortality among individuals aged 50 and older in Spain, disaggregated by sex and five-year age groups. Mortality trends were examined over two periods (2000-2008 and 2009-2023) to assess patterns of change over time.Results: Overall, HF mortality has declined in Spain, with a sharper reduction from 2000 to 2008, followed by a more gradual decrease in subsequent years. Women exhibited a 34.4% higher average HF mortality rate compared to men, although this gap narrowed significantly over the study period. Age-stratified analysis revealed higher HF mortality in men aged 50-79, while in those aged 80 and older, women exhibited higher mortality.Conclusions: Persistent sex disparities in HF mortality underscore the need for gendersensitive approaches to cardiovascular disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.Public health policies must prioritize HF and integrate sex-specific considerations to address inequities and improve outcomes for both women and men.
Keywords: Heart Failure, sex differences, mortality trends, Health Outcomes, Aging adults
Received: 17 Jun 2025; Accepted: 12 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Hurtado-Prieto, Mariscal-Lopez, Gutierrez-Bedmar and Lopez-gigosos. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Eloisa Mariscal-Lopez, Cardiology Service, Hospital Universitario Costa del Sol, Marbella, Spain
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