Cardiovascular disease was Malta's leading cause of death in 2022

The list tabled in parliament shows a number of causes of death, including traffic accidents, homicides, suicides and a number of diseases

27 February 2024, 5:13pm
by Matthew Farrugia

2 min read

According to information tabled in parliament, the vast majority of those who died from cardiovascular disease were 65 years old or older

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Cardiovascular disease was Malta’s leading cause of death in 2022, taking 1,211 lives.

According to information tabled in parliament, the vast majority of those who died from cardiovascular disease were 65 years old or older, as the elderly make up 1,080 of the total victims. Meanwhile, 117 people aged between 45 and 64 years old died from the same cause.

The second leading disease in 2022 was cancer, which claimed the lives of 1,037 people. Similarly, elderly people made up the majority of the victims, with 836 deaths. Cancer also claimed the lives of 180 people aged between 45 and 64 years old.

Meanwhile, four people aged between one and 24 years old died from the disease, while 17 people between 25 and 44 years old fell victim to cancer.

Respiratory diseases killed 517 people in 2022, with 481 of them being 65 years old or older.

The information tabled in parliament also included the amount of babies that died due to complications before, during or after birth. These totalled 13 babies.

Dementia was the cause of death of 352 people, with five people aged between 45 and 64 dying of the disease. The remaining 347 were 65 years old or older.

2022 was the deadliest year with regards to traffic accident deaths, with 29 in total. Ten of these were elderly people, as five victims were aged between one year old and 24 years old. The remaining 14 deaths were split evenly between the 25-44 and 45-64 age groups.

The information tabled in parliament also listed 113 deaths which were caused by accidents including examples such as drowning and falling. These accidents claimed the lives of 72 elderly people, 17 people aged between 45 and 64 years old, as well as 23 people between the ages of 25 and 44 years old. One victim was less than 25 years old.

When it comes to diabetes, 160 elderly people died from the disease, while 15 and one person aged between 45 to 64 years old, and 25 to 44 years old respectively passed away.

Meanwhile, five people were killed in homicides while 27 people took their own lives.

During the final pandemic year, there were a total of 201 deaths due to Covid-19. Of these deaths, 177 people were elderly, 20 were between 45 and 64 years old and three were between 25 and 44 years old. The statistics also show that one person who died from Covid-19 who was aged between one and 24 years old.

Matthew Farrugia is a staff reporter at MaltaToday