Dementia Poised to Overtake Heart Disease as Australia's Leading Cause of Death

New data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics highlights the rapid rise of dementia-related deaths, driven by an ageing population and improved heart disease treatments.

• Dementia-related deaths in Australia rose to 16,685 in 2023, closely trailing the 16,922 deaths from heart disease.
• The mortality rate for dementia has increased by over 842% in the past 50 years, while heart disease mortality has decreased by 87.9%.
• Dementia is now the leading cause of death among Australian women, accounting for 12.2% of all female deaths.
• COVID-19 deaths in Australia dropped significantly in 2023, making it the ninth leading cause of death compared to third in 2022.
• Suicide remains a significant concern, with higher rates in regional areas and among Indigenous Australians, who are almost three times more likely to die by suicide than non-Indigenous Australians.

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