Top 15 Causes of Death in the U.S.

You won't find too many surprises on the most recent report on leading causes of death in the United States, but it might remind you that you should exercise, eat healthy, not smoke, watch for cars when you cross the road, and to get an annual flu shot, among other things. And those of us at Health News think that's a good thing.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) compiles an annual list with information it obtains through its Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. The statistics for the most recent year, 2005, show a total of 2,448,017 resident deaths registered, based on death certificates completed by funeral directors, attending physicians, medical examiners, and coroners.

Death certificates enable the CDC to tabulate information and access mortality patterns among U.S. residents by such variables as age, sex, race, marital status, educational attainment, injury at work, state of residence, and cause of death. This information can be used to monitor and evaluate the health status of the U.S. in terms of current mortality levels and long-term mortality trends, as well as identifying segments of the population that are at greater risk of death from specific diseases and injuries.

Since the death rate figures can be skewed by an aging population and other factors in a particular area, the NCHS uses a specific formula to tabulate the totals, which represent number of deaths per 100,000 people. This age-adjusted death rate (AADR) shows what the level of mortality would be if no changes occurred in the age composition of the population from year to year. Therefore, the AADR’s are better indicators than crude or unadjusted death rates for examining the changes in the risk of death over a period of time when the age distribution of the population is changing. AADR’s are also better indicators of death risk when comparing mortality across geographic areas or between sex or race subgroups.

After taking the aging of the population into account, the 2,448,017 deaths in 2005 computes into 798.8 deaths per 100,000 U.S. which, according to the report, was a record low. Since 1980, the AADR has decreased every year except in 1983, 1985, 1988, 1993, and 1999, which were years in which influenza outbreaks contributed to increased mortality in the United States. Between 1980 and 2005, the AADR declined 23.1 percent.

The report also listed the top 15 leading causes of death in 2005, also arranged according to AADR. As you may have guessed, #1 was heart disease, but what you may not know is which states had the highest incidence. At the top of the list was Mississippi with 306.8, followed by Alabama (273.5), Oklahoma (272.6), Kentucky (258.50, and Louisiana (255.7). The lowest rate belongs to Minnesota with 141.5.

The #2 cause of death was to cancer, or malignant neoplasms. Ranking at the top of this list was Kentucky with 219.9, Tennessee with 211.5, Louisiana with 209.3, Mississippi with 208.4, and Arkansas at 208.3. Lowest: Utah at 139.4.

Next we have #3: Stroke or cerebrovascular diseases. Alabama had the highest AADR of 63.1, Tennessee at 63.0, Arkansas at 61.0, Oklahoma at 61.0, and South Carolina at 58.5. Lowest: New York at 30.6.

Chronic Lower Respiratory Diseases takes the #4 spot. The highest numbers belong to Oklahoma (63.5), Kentucky (61.3), West Virginia (60.5), Nevada (59.4), and Wyoming (57.2). Lowest: Hawaii with 18.7.

Accidents/Unintentional Injuries is #5, probably the one COD on this list that we have little control over. Louisiana rates highest with 68.8, Mississippi at 66.6, New Mexico t 66.6, Wyoming at 58.6, and Kentucky at 57.3. Lowest: New York with 22.9.

Diabetes is at #6. Louisiana comes in with highest numbers again with 38.7, West Virginia - 34.4, Oklahoma - 32.6, New Mexico - 31.2, and Tennessee - 30.4. Lowest: Hawaii with 14.7.

Alzheimer’s Disease, the fatal brain disorder, ranks #7 with Tennessee having the highst incidence with 36.2, followed by Washington (35.9), Louisiana (34.2), Alabama (33.2), and South Carolina (32.4). Lowest: New York with 9.2.

Surprisingly, Influenza/Pneumonia are #8. (You should really think about getting an annual vaccination.) Arkansas is at the top with 29.2, Tennessee - 27.6, Oklahoma - 26.1, New York - 25.3, Kentucky - 25.1. Lowest: Florida at 11.8.

At #9 is Kidney Disease, where Louisiana yet again tops the chart with 27.6. Not far behind is Mississippi with 23.7, Alabama with 22.0, Kentucky with 22.0, and Nevada with 21.4. Lowest: South Dakota with 5.7.

Round out our top 10 is Septicemia (blood poisoning). Louisiana leads with 19.9, Maryland - 19.8, New Jersey - 19.8, Mississippi - 19.7, and Nevada - 19.3. Lowest: California with 3.1.

The remaining five causes were suicide, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, hypertension, Parkinson’s disease, and homicide. The AADR decreased significantly from 2004 to 2005 for the top three leading causes: heart disease, cancer and stroke. Significant increases occurred for chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents/unintentional injuries, Alzheimer’s disease, influenza and pneumonia, hypertension, Parkinson’s disease, and homicide.

So be careful out there. See your doctor regularly, take care of yourself, and keep from becoming a statistic.