Sudden death in the southern region of Saudi Arabia: A retrospective study

Table 1 Direct causes of sudden death according to death certificates (2013-2016)

Direct causes of death	Gender				Total
	Male		Female
	n	%	n	%	n	%
CVS	60	16.9	43	12.2	103	29.2
CAD1 including MI2	50	14.2	27	7.7	77	21.8
Hypertension	7	2	3	0.9	10	2.8
Stroke	5	1.4	2	0.6	7	2
Cardiogenic shock	2	0.6	1	0.3	3	0.9
Life threatening arrhythmias	4	1.1	2	0.6	6	1.7
Respiratory disease	37	10.5	43	12.2	80	22.7
Pneumonia	17	4.8	21	6	38	10.8
Respiratory failure	1	0.3	3	0.9	4	1.1
Asthma	3	0.9	5	1.4	8	2.7
COPD	11	3.1	19	5.4	30	8.5
Infectious disease	18	5.1	25	7.1	43	12.2
Cancer	17	4.8	16	4.5	33	9.4
Hematological disease	15	4.3	7	2	22	6.2
Neuropsychiatric disease	9	2.6	4	1.1	13	3.7
Renal disease	8	2.3	5	1.4	13	3.7
DM	8	2.3	6	1.7	14	4
Liver disease	6	1.7	3	0.9	9	2.6
Congenital anomaly	4	1.1	6	1.7	10	2.8
Prematurity	4	1.1	1	0.3	5	1.4
Immunological disorders	3	0.9	5	1.4	8	2.3

¹Coronary artery diseases.

²Myocardial infarction.

CVS: Cardiovascular system; CAD: Coronary artery disease; MI: Myocardial infarction; COPD: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; DM: Diabetes mellitus.

Table 2 Frequency of the initial presenting symptoms

Percentage	No. of cases	Prodromal symptoms
26.6	94	Chest pain
18.4	65	Dyspnea
14.7	52	Fever
11.1	39	Disturbed consciousness
7.7	27	Circulatory collapse
5.4	19	Cough
5.4	19	Abdominal distension
3.4	12	Nausea and vomiting
2.3	8	Hematemesis
1.9	7	Hemoptysis
1.4	5	Not stated
1.1	4	Seizures
0.7	2	Prematurity

Table 3 Frequency of pre-existing medical problems

Percentage	No. of cases	Past medical history
23.2	82	Cardiovascular disease
18.8	66	Respiratory disease
15	53	Infectious disease
8.2	29	Kidney disease
7.7	27	Cancer
4.5	16	Hematological disease
4.3	15	Diabetes mellitus
4	14	Intestinal disease
4	14	Liver disease
3.4	12	Neuropsychiatric disease
3.4	12	Congenital disease
2.8	10	Immunological disease
0.9	3	Not stated