Heart Foundation data show Orana and Far West are high risk areas

With coronary heart disease the leading cause of death in Australia, it is concerning both the Far West and Orana region along with the Central West, feature heavily in the report.

The figures released on Tuesday reveal the NSW regions with the highest and lowest rates of hospitalisations from heart attack, along with other heart and health data.

The Far West and Orana region was listed as second for coronary heart disease deaths, 33 per cent above the state average, behind the New England and North West.

The region also ranked sixth out of the 28 NSW regions with heart attack hospital admissions approximately 23 per cent above the state average.

The damning report also found the Far West and Orana region had NSW's highest prevalence of smoking, the highest prevalence of obesity and the states second-highest rate of death from coronary heart disease with a rate of 84.7 out of every 100,000 people, approximately 31 per cent above the state average.

The Central West fared slightly better in the report, however the region still ranked fourth in the state for obesity levels with almost 42 percent of adults classed as obese, and had the ninth highest rate of death from coronary heart disease with a rate of 70.5 out of every 100,000 people.

Heart Foundation's NSW/ACT Heart Health Manager Anna Flynn, said the report revealed a worrying issue for people living in rural and regional areas.

"These figures reveal an alarming inequality between the NSW residents who are most and least at risk of heart disease, as well as those who are most and least likely to be hospitalised or die from the condition, including from a heart attack," she said.

"If you live in the state's remote south, north or west, or in a disadvantaged part of Sydney, you have a much higher chance of heart disease, which remains the single leading cause of death in NSW.

"This is unacceptable and the Heart Foundation will continue its work to reduce heart disease.

"We also urge governments at all levels to take action to curb the toll, especially in regional, rural and disadvantaged areas, where our Heart Maps show the burden of heart disease is at its highest."

Both the Central West, and Far West and Orana, were also in the top 10 for the prevalence physical inactivity and high blood pressure, with both labelled as key risk factors of heart disease which represents one in five of all deaths in Australia.

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