Socioeconomic inequalities in cardiovascular health across Europe

Q: What is the clinical evidence from this study?

Study design: Cross-Sectional. Population: Cardiovascular disease. Intervention: Socioeconomic conditions (income, education, unemployment). Primary outcome: Standardised prevalence estimates and summary measures of dispersion (Gini coefficients) of heart-problem prevalence.

Q: What does this research mean for the field?

Cardiovascular disease prevalence across Europe exhibits an East-West gradient, with Mediterranean nations having lower overall prevalence but greater within-country dispersion, whereas Eastern European nations display higher prevalence with more uniform distribution. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.INCREMENTAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

Ayesha Razakh; Mark Walker; Michal Valko; Håkan Lane

doi:10.1186/s12982-026-02210-8

July 1, 2026Discover Public HealthOpen Access

Socioeconomic inequalities in cardiovascular health across Europe

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Key result

Socioeconomic factors link to an East-West cardiovascular health gradient with lower Mediterranean prevalence.

Key Points

To assess how country-level socioeconomic indicators shape national cardiovascular disease risk and examine whether patterns of inequality in heart problems differ across European regions.
Analyzed harmonized, country-level data on self-reported heart and circulatory problems, income, education, and unemployment from the European Social Survey.
Calculated standardized prevalence estimates and summary measures of dispersion, including Gini coefficients, to measure internal health inequality across nations.
Used clustering approaches to identify latent groups of countries sharing similar distributional patterns of cardiovascular disease.
Analysis revealed a distinct East-West geographic gradient across Europe in cardiovascular disease burden.
Mediterranean nations demonstrated a lower overall prevalence of heart problems but greater internal inequality (higher dispersion) within their populations.
Eastern European countries exhibited higher overall prevalence of heart problems alongside more uniform distributions (lower dispersion) across their populations.

Study Design

Type

Cross-Sectional

Multicenter

Yes

Structured PICO

P

Population

Cross-sectional analysis of country-level indicators from the European Social Survey assessing socioeconomic inequalities in cardiovascular health across Europe.

O

Outcome

Prevalence and dispersion (Gini coefficients) of heart and circulatory problems

There is a distinct East-West gradient in cardiovascular health inequalities across Europe, highlighting the complex relationship between socioeconomic conditions and heart disease prevalence.

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Implication

East-West gradients show lower heart-problem prevalence but higher inequality in Mediterranean vs Eastern Europe; leaves open targeted policy effects.

Abstract

Socioeconomic conditions shape cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, yet how patterns of inequality differ across nations remains insufficiently examined. In this cross-sectional study using country‑level indicators related to heart and circulatory problems, income, education and unemployment from the European Social Survey (ESS), we derived standardised prevalence estimates and summary measures of dispersion, including Gini coefficients, to characterise how unevenly heart‑problem prevalence is distributed within each country. The results revealed a distinct East-West gradient with substantial differences between Mediterranean nations which showed lower overall prevalence but greater dispersion in heart‑problem prevalence, whereas Eastern European countries exhibited higher prevalence but more uniform distributions. These findings highlight the complexity of the relationship between socioeconomic conditions and cardiovascular health, and demonstrate the value of social indicators and inequality metrics for understanding population well-being and quality of life across nations.

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Cite This Study

Razakh et al. (2026) conducted a cross-sectional in Cardiovascular disease. Socioeconomic conditions (income, education, unemployment) was evaluated on Standardised prevalence estimates and summary measures of dispersion (Gini coefficients) of heart-problem prevalence. Socioeconomic conditions shaped cardiovascular health across Europe, revealing an East-West gradient where Mediterranean nations had lower prevalence but greater dispersion than Eastern Europe.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a4752775c29257aa25791e9 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12982-026-02210-8

View Full Paper

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Socioeconomic inequalities in cardiovascular health across Europe

Key Points

Study Design

Structured PICO

Ask about this paper

Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

Socioeconomic inequalities in cardiovascular health across Europe

Key Points

Study Design

Structured PICO

Ask about this paper

Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

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