The decadelong reduction in heart failure deaths has "been entirely undone" in recent years, according to a research letter published April 24 in JAMA Network.
From 1999 to 2005, cardiovascular failure-related deaths declined, on average, 1.62% each year. From 2005 to 2009, the downward trend sharpened to falling 3.29% before plateauing until 2012—when the trend suddenly changed direction.
"The increases from 2012 to 2021 were larger than the initial declines, such that the reversal in mortality was 103.2%," the researchers found.
The reversal was noted in all population subgroups, but the greatest changes happened among people younger than 45 (906.3% growth), those between 45 and 64 years old (384.7%), males (119%), non-Hispanic Black people (166.5%), and individuals living in the South (118.2%), the Midwest (115.3%) and rural areas (92.3%).