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Hospital Cardiovascular Cases in Barbados
BNR CVD case-count briefing, 2023
Briefing created by the Barbados National Chronic Disease Registry, The University of the West Indies
Group Contacts • Christina Howitt (BNR lead) • Ian Hambleton (analytics) • Updated on 28 Apr 2026
Key messages
312
strokes recorded in women in 2023
312
strokes recorded in men in 2023
105
heart attacks recorded in women in 2023
141
heart attacks recorded in men in 2023
Stroke cases remained above the recent five-year average through much of the year, while heart attacks remained below average for much of the year.
Why this matters
Counts are the simplest and most transparent way to show what is happening in our hospital.
- Each number represents a person who suffered a heart attack or stroke.
- Together, these numbers show pressure on the health system.
- Before interpreting trends or calculating rates, we need confidence in the raw counts.
Case counts are the foundation for later surveillance outputs: trends, rates, inequalities, and service-readiness indicators.
What we did
We reviewed all hospital-registered strokes and heart attacks for 2023 and compared them with the previous five years.
- We examined who was affected: men and women, under 70 and 70 or older.
- We tracked how cases built up week by week.
- We compared 2023 counts with the five-year average to identify when numbers were above or below expected levels.
Stroke and heart attack cases in 2023 compared with the five-year average
Main pattern
- Strokes stayed consistently above the five-year average.
- By year end, stroke counts were about 60 cases higher than expected.
- Heart attacks remained below average for much of 2023.
Interpretation
In 2023, the Barbados National Registry recorded:
- 312 strokes in women and 312 in men.
- 105 heart attacks in women and 141 in men.
The contrast between stroke and heart attack patterns may reflect how quickly each emergency is recognised and treated, as well as lingering post-COVID changes in health-seeking behaviour.
What the contrast may suggest
Stroke patients may reach hospital sooner through family or bystander action. People with heart attack symptoms may delay seeking care.
This means hospital activity may shift even when underlying disease burden is also changing.
Simple counts act as an early warning for changes in both care-seeking behaviour and system readiness.
Proportion of stroke and heart attack cases occurring before age 70
Premature burden
- Among men, over half of strokes affected those under 70.
- Nearly two-thirds of heart attacks in men occurred before age 70.
- Among women, around 40% of strokes and nearly half of heart attacks occurred before age 70.
Premature cardiovascular disease
Across both sexes, a large share of cardiovascular events continue to occur before age 70.
This highlights the ongoing burden of premature cardiovascular disease in Barbados.
The persistence of high proportions of early events shows that much of Barbados’ cardiovascular disease remains preventable.
Outputs and citation
Tables, figure data, metadata, and build records are available in the online briefing.
Barbados National Registry. Hospital Cardiovascular Cases in Barbados: BNR CVD case-count briefing, 2023. Barbados National Chronic Disease Registry, The University of the West Indies. Accessed: [insert date accessed].
