Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cardiovascular disease mortality in a major metropolitan area

BACKGROUND: The mortality from COVID-19 alone cannot account for the impact of the pandemic. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality has increased disproportionately in specific racial/ethnic populations. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to characterize how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the association between CVD mortality and social and demographic factors as characterized by the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). METHODS: Medical Examiner Case Archive of Cook County, Illinois was utilized to identify CVD deaths in 2019 (pre-pandemic) and 2020 (pandemic). Rate ratios (RRs) were used to compare age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMRs). Addresses of deaths were geocoded to Chicago Community Areas. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (ρ) test was used to identify the association between SVI and CVD mortality. RESULTS: AAMRs of CVD deaths significantly increased among non-Hispanic Black individuals (AAMRR, 1.1; 95 % CI, 1.1–1.2) and Hispanic individuals (AAMRR, 1.8; 95 % CI, 1.5–2.1) from 2019 to 2020. Among non-Hispanic White individuals, the AAMR did not significantly increase (AAMRR, 1.0; 95 % CI, 0.9–1.1). A significant positive association was observed between SVI and the percentage of non-Hispanic Black residents (ρ = 0.45; P < 0.05), while the inverse was observed with the percentage of non-Hispanic White residents (ρ = −0.77; P < 0.05). A significant positive association between SVI and CVD mortality rate increased (ρ = 0.24 and 0.28; P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Significant association between SVI and CVD mortality was strengthened from 2019 to 2020, and CVD mortality increased among non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic populations. These findings demonstrate that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an exacerbation of health inequities among different racial/ethnic populations resulting in increased CVD mortality.