The ward level morbidity data were provided by Hospital Episode Statistics measured in Finished Consultant Episodes (FCEs) for CHD. A Finished Consultant Episode refers to a completed period of care of a patient using a NHS hospital bed, under one consultant within one NHS Trust. The rate of FCEs gives some basis for comparison of the prevalence and incidence of different diseases. This data source only provides data at ward level for England.

Geographic variations in CHD morbidity are not as clear as those for mortality. For example, although morbidity rates tend to be higher in the North than the South, higher rates also tend to be found in urban areas. Over 27% of the wards in London are in the top quintile (i.e. top 20%) of morbidity rates for men under 75s in England. This rises to 35% for wards in the North East, and is as low as 9% for wards in the South East. For women of all ages this range is even larger: 44% of wards in the North East are among the top quintile for female morbidity rates compared to only 7% of wards in the South East.

There is considerable variation within regions for CHD morbidity rates. For men of all ages, the FCE rate for South Shropshire in the West Midlands is 624 per 100,000 whereas the equivalent rate in Wolverhampton is 1,216 per 100,000, nearly 95% higher. For women in the North West there is a greater range of FCE rates: 280 per 100,000 in Congleton compared to 918 per 100,000 in Knowsley, nearly 330% higher.