Studies that treat quantitative mortality data analytically. Methodological studies primarily concerned with mortality are cited in this division and cross-referenced to N. Methods of Research and Analysis Including Models, if necessary. The main references to crude data are in the vital statistics items in S. Official Statistical Publications.
Studies of overall mortality and comparisons of several types of mortality. Studies dealing with two or more of the topics listed in this division are classified under the major section covered, or, if this is not self-evident, included here under General Mortality.
65:40209 Andreev, Evgueni. The
dynamics of mortality in the Russian Federation. In: Health and
mortality: issues of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on
Health and Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J.
Chamie and R. L. Cliquet. 1999. 262-90 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
The three stated
purposes of this paper are to describe mortality trends in Russia since
World War II, to analyze those factors that explain the differences in
mortality between Russia and the developed countries of the West, and
to assess the prospects for further mortality decline in the country.
Topics covered include trends in age-specific mortality, causes of
death, mortality differentials by educational status, and regional
differences in mortality. "A decline in the expectation of life of
Russia's population has been observed for a period of more than 30
years. Under the circumstances, the pessimistic but most likely
prospect is that the decline will continue." On the more positive
side, the author notes an improvement in the quality and accessibility
of vital statistics data, and the beginnings of a more constructive
social response to these negative mortality
trends.
Correspondence: E. Andreev, Research Institute of
Statistics Goskomstat of Russia, Department of Demography, Izmailovskoe
Shosse 44, 105679 Moscow, Russia. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40210 Barlow, Robin; Vissandjée,
Bilkis. Determinants of national life expectancy.
Canadian Journal of Development Studies, Vol. 20, No. 1, 1999. 9-29 pp.
Ottawa, Canada. In Eng. with sum. in Fre.
"This paper presents
a multivariate cross-national analysis of life expectancy at birth in
1990. A model of life expectancy is used which distinguishes between
proximate and distal determinants, and measures the direct and indirect
effects of the distal variables. It is found that literacy, per capita
income, and access to safe water supplies have significantly positive
effects on life expectancy. Fertility and tropical location have
significant negative effects, and per capita food consumption of animal
products shows an inverted-U relationship with life expectancy. Per
capita health expenditure and the urbanization rate appear to be weak
determinants."
Correspondence: R. Barlow, University
of Michigan, Department of Epidemiology, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029.
Location: Princeton University Library (SF).
65:40211 Bopp, M.; Gutzwiller, F.
All-cause mortality trends in Switzerland since 1950.
[Entwicklung der Mortalität in der Schweiz seit 1950.]
Schweizerische Medizinische Wochenschrift/Journal Suisse de
Médecine/Swiss Medical Weekly, Vol. 129, No. 20-21, May 1999.
760-71; 799-809 pp. Basel, Switzerland. In Ger. with sum. in Eng.
This two-part article analyzes trends in all-cause mortality in
Switzerland since 1950. In the first part, the authors examine
differences in mortality by sex, age, and nationality and make
comparisons with other European countries. In the second part, they
look at geographical differences in mortality within Switzerland.
Problems concerning data on mortality for foreigners are noted, which
need to be taken into account when making international comparisons.
"Geographical differences in mortality risks within Switzerland,
as well as international disparities, suggest that there is a need for
preventive measures in Switzerland, first and foremost concerning males
aged 15-49 years and deaths from `external'
causes."
Correspondence: M. Bopp, Universität
Zurich, Institut für Sozial- und Präventivmedizin,
Sumatrastrasse 30, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40212 Cárdenas, Rosario.
The epidemiological transition in Mexico: what the data on cause of
death reveal. In: Health and mortality: issues of global concern.
Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and Mortality, Brussels, 19-22
November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L. Cliquet. 1999. 158-80 pp.
Centrum voor Bevolkings- en Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels,
Belgium; UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs: New York, New
York. In Eng.
Recent mortality trends in Mexico are examined.
"By analysing cause of death data, this paper aims at identifying:
(a) the main characteristics of the epidemiological profile of Mexico;
(b) causes for changes in life expectancy; and (c) the main causes of
premature mortality." The results suggest that, despite a long
period of economic recession which started in 1982, mortality has
steadily declined over time. "The results reported in this paper
have been brought about mainly by a combination of factors. They
include sustained public health efforts such as the immunization
campaigns which resulted in the eradication of polio; a demographic
change in the age-structure, which is a consequence in turn of the
increase in life expectancy; and to a certain extent, the wider
availability of medical services."
Correspondence: R.
Cárdenas, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Unidad
Xochimilco, Calz. del Hueso 1100, Col. Villa Quietud, 04960 Mexico
City, DF, Mexico. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40213 Chackiel, Juan.
Mortality in Latin America. In: Health and mortality: issues
of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and
Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L.
Cliquet. 1999. 132-57 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
This is a review of
the general situation concerning mortality in Latin America. The
emphasis is on developments in adult mortality. There are sections on
the availability and quality of data; mortality trends; mortality by
sex, age and cause of death; mortality transition and epidemiological
transition; and mortality differentials according to socioeconomic
variables.
Correspondence: J. Chackiel, UN Centro
Latinoamericano y Caribeño de Demografía, Edificio
Naciones Unidas, Avenida Dag Hammarskjold, Casilla 91, Santiago, Chile.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40214 Charbit, Yves; Régnard,
Corinne. Population dynamics and geographical patterns of
African populations. [Dynamiques démographiques et
dimensions géographiques des populations africaines.] Espace,
Populations, Sociétés, No. 1, 1999. 13-27 pp. Villeneuve
d'Ascq, France. In Fre. with sum. in Eng.
"This paper assesses
changes in the trends of mortality and fertility and the influence of
urbanization on both variables [in Sub-Saharan Africa]. A regional
analysis shows that [contrary] to the theory of demographic transition,
urbanization does not necessarily induce a decline of fertility and of
mortality. Other factors must be taken into account, for instance the
supply of health care."
Correspondence: Y. Charbit,
Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches sur les Populations Africaines et
Asiatiques, 45 rue des Saints Pères, 75005 Paris, France.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40215 Doblhammer, Gabriele.
Longevity and month of birth: evidence from Austria and
Denmark. Demographic Research, Vol. 1, 1999. Rostock, Germany. In
Eng.
"This article shows that in two European countries,
Austria and Denmark, a person's life span correlates with his or her
month of birth. It presents evidence that this pattern is not the
result of the seasonal distribution of death. It also shows that the
seasonal pattern in longevity cannot be explained by the so-called
birthday effect--the alleged tendency of people to die shortly after
their birthday. The article concludes with a discussion of possible
social and biological mechanisms related to a person's season of birth
that might influence life expectancy."
Correspondence:
G. Doblhammer, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research,
Doberaner Straße 114, 18057 Rostock, Germany.
65:40216 Ecclestone, Martin.
Mortality of rural landless men before the Black Death: the
Glastonbury head-tax lists. Local Population Studies, No. 63,
Autumn 1999. 6-29 pp. Colchester, England. In Eng.
An attempt is
made to estimate mortality among landless rural men in
fourteenth-century England using data from court rolls of manors owned
by Glastonbury Abbey.
Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40217 Edmondson, Brad. The
facts of death. American Demographics, Vol. 19, No. 4, Apr 1997.
46-53 pp. Stamford, Connecticut. In Eng.
The author briefly
characterizes recent mortality trends in the United States. Aspects
considered include sex, time of year, place of death, date of birth and
age, city and state of birth, race, Hispanic origin, education, marital
status, cause of death, and autopsy incidence.
Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40218 Gerylovová, Anna;
Holcík, Jan. Life expectancy in regions and
districts of the Czech Republic. [Strední délka
zivota v krajích a okresech Ceské republiky.] Demografie,
Vol. 41, No. 3, 1999. 184-92 pp. Prague, Czech Republic. In Cze. with
sum. in Eng.
The authors provide a regional analysis of life
expectancy at birth in the Czech Republic from 1981 to 1995. Particular
attention is paid to differences by sex, age, and
district.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40219 Hanzek, Matjaz; Turnsek,
Nada. Lifestyles and mortality in European countries.
[Zivljenjski slog in umrljivost v evropskih drzavah.] Druzboslovne
Razprave, Vol. 13, No. 24-25, 1997. 118-32, 207 pp. Ljubljana,
Slovenia. In Slv. with sum. in Eng.
An analysis of the relationship
between lifestyle and mortality is presented using data on the
countries of Europe. "Using the method of multi-dimensional
cluster analysis...[the authors] identified 12 groups of countries in
Europe--six in the East and six in the West--which resemble each other
in terms of causes of death and mortality patterns. The border between
an eastern and a western lifestyle runs through the countries of the
former Austro-Hungarian Empire."
Correspondence: N.
Turnsek, Univerza v Ljubljani, Pedagoska Fakulteta, Kardeljeva Ploscad
16, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40220 Hill, Kenneth. The
measurement of adult mortality: an assessment of data availability,
data quality and estimation methods. In: Health and mortality:
issues of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and
Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L.
Cliquet. 1999. 72-83 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en Gezinsstudiën
[CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic and Social
Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
"This paper first reviews
data sources relevant to the measurement of adult mortality, then data
availability from each source, and finally the analytical methods
available to use the data from these sources. The paper concludes with
a discussion of appropriate strategies for countries in order to
improve their adult mortality estimates." The primary focus is on
the situation in developing countries.
Correspondence: K.
Hill, Johns Hopkins University, School of Hygiene and Public Health,
Population Center, 615 North Wolfe Street, Room 2300, Baltimore, MD
21205-2179. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40221 Horiuchi, Shiro.
Epidemiological transitions in human history. In: Health and
mortality: issues of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on
Health and Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J.
Chamie and R. L. Cliquet. 1999. 54-71 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
"This paper
has presented a five-stage model of the epidemiological transition of
human mortality, and also describes some possible reverse transitions.
The model is a combination of a generalisation of past patterns and a
prospect of future changes. Since the actual pattern of historical
mortality change varies among countries and regions, it may not be
difficult to find specific cases that do not fit the model well. The
main purpose of this model, however, is to provide a bird's-eye view of
a typical course of mortality history in human societies. The model can
be used as a conceptual framework for describing, analysing, and
predicting actual mortality trends in the past and
future."
Correspondence: S. Horiuchi, Rockefeller
University, Laboratory of Population, New York, NY 10021-6399.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40222 Hoyert, Donna L.; Kochanek, Kenneth
D.; Murphy, Sherry L. Deaths: final data for 1997.
NCHS National Vital Statistics Reports, Vol. 47, No. 19, Jun 30, 1999.
104 pp. U.S. National Center for Health Statistics [NCHS]: Hyattsville,
Maryland. In Eng.
"This report presents final 1997 data on
U.S. deaths and death rates according to demographic and medical
characteristics such as age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, marital
status, educational attainment, injury at work, State of residence, and
cause of death. Trends and patterns in general mortality, life
expectancy, and infant and maternal mortality are also
described."
Correspondence: U.S. National Center for
Health Statistics, 6525 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, MD 20782-2003.
E-mail: nchsquery@cdc.gov. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40223 Johansson, Sven-Erik; Sundquist,
Jan. Change in lifestyle factors and their influence on
health status and all-cause mortality. International Journal of
Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 6, Dec 1999. 1,073-80 pp. Oxford, England.
In Eng.
"The purpose of this study was to analyse both
cross-sectional associations and how longitudinal changes in lifestyle
factors from one state in 1980-1981 to another in 1988-1989 influence
self-reported health status. Another aim was to estimate the hazard
ratios for all-cause mortality for the changes in lifestyle factors and
self-reported hypertension during the same period of time. The
cross-sectional and the longitudinal analyses are based on the same
simple random sample of 3,843 adults, aged 25-74, interviewed in
1980-1981 and 1988-1989 and is part of the Swedish Annual
Level-of-Living Survey." Factors considered include physical
activity, smoking, and body mass index (BMI). The results suggest that
"physical activity protects against poor health irrespective of an
increased BMI and smoking. The major clinical implications are the
long-standing benefits of physical activity and not
smoking."
Correspondence: S.-E. Johansson, Statistics
Sweden, Department of Welfare and Social Statistics, Box 24300, 104 51
Stockholm, Sweden. E-mail: svenerik.johansson@scb.se. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40224 Kunst, Anton E.; Wolleswinkel-van den
Bosch, Judith H.; Mackenbach, Johan P. Medical demography
in the Netherlands: recent advances, future challenges. In:
Population issues: an interdisciplinary focus, edited by Leo J. G. van
Wissen and Pearl A. Dykstra. 1999. 187-228 pp. Kluwer Academic/Plenum
Publishers: New York, New York/Dordrecht, Netherlands. In Eng.
"This chapter provides an overview of medical demographic
research conducted in the Netherlands during the 1990s. The methods and
principal findings are discussed of studies on: (a) past trends in
mortality, (b) current mortality differentials, (c) future trends in
mortality, (d) future trends in morbidity, and (e) the consequences of
these trends for health care demand, cost and financing. Compared with
the late 1980s, significant advances have been made in all these fields
of research. Studies that combined advanced data acquisition with
multivariate statistical techniques have succeeded to move from
description to explanation of mortality trends or differentials.
Studies that applied sophisticated population-based models have greatly
improved the projection of future trends in mortality and
morbidity."
Correspondence: A. E. Kunst, Erasmus
University, Department of Public Health, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR
Rotterdam, Netherlands. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40225 Mansfield, Christopher J.; Wilson,
James L.; Kobrinski, Edward J.; Mitchell, Jim. Premature
mortality in the United States: the roles of geographic area,
socioeconomic status, household type, and availability of medical
care. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No. 6, Jun 1999.
893-8 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
"This study examined
premature mortality by county in the United States and assessed its
association with metro/urban/rural geographic location, socioeconomic
status, household type, and availability of medical care.... Premature
mortality was greatest in rural counties in the South-east and
Southwest.... Community structure factors explained more than
availability of medical care. The proportions of female-headed
households and Black populations were the strongest
predictors...."
Correspondence: C. J. Mansfield, East
Carolina University, Center for Health Services Research and
Development, Building N, Physicians Quadrangle, Greenville, NC 27858.
E-mail: mansfield@brody.med.ecu.edu. Location: Princeton
University Library (SZ).
65:40226 Michel, Harald.
Mortality decline in eighteenth-century Germany--component,
prerequisite, or precursor of the demographic transition?
[Sterblichkeitsrückgang im 18. Jahrhundert in
Deutschland--Bestandteil, Voraussetzung oder Vorläufer der
demographischen Transition?] Wissenschaftliche Zeitschrift der
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin: Reihe Gesellschaftswissenschaften,
Vol. 39, No. 4, 1990. 367-9 pp. Berlin, Germany. In Ger.
The
temporary mortality decline that occurred in Germany between 1700 and
1750 is discussed in relation to the permanent demographic transition
that took place a century later. Its primary cause seems to have been
improved agricultural productivity and absence of pandemics in this
period. The author argues that the resulting moderate population
increase was a factor in stimulating the industrial revolution and
thereby the demographic transition proper.
Correspondence:
H. Michel, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Sektion
Wirtschaftwissenschaften, Spandauer Straße 1, Berlin 1020,
Germany. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40227 Ngongo, Kypa N.; Nante, Nicola;
Chenet, Laurent; McKee, Martin. What has contributed to
the change in life expectancy in Italy between 1980 and 1992?
Health Policy, Vol. 48, No. 1, Jul 1999. 1-12 pp. Limerick, Ireland. In
Eng.
"Life expectancy at birth in southern Europe is known to
be greater than expected in comparison with levels of economic
development. This has been attributed to the `Mediterranean diet'.
There are, however, concerns that this comparative advantage is being
lost. This paper examines the factors underlying changing life
expectancy in Italy since 1980. The subjects of this analysis are
obtained from data on all deaths in Italy between 1980 and 1992. Change
in age specific death rates is calculated from selected causes and,
using the method developed by Pollard, the contribution of deaths from
different causes and at different ages to changing life expectancy at
birth is estimated."
Correspondence: M. McKee, London
School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, European Center for Health on
Societies in Transition, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, England.
E-mail: M.McKee@lshtm.ac.uk. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40228 Park, Kyung-Ae. Recent
trends and patterns of mortality in Korea. Development and
Society, Vol. 27, No. 2, Dec 1998. 67-81 pp. Seoul, Korea. In Eng.
"Korea continues to experience rapid demographic transition
and population aging. This study examines mortality trends and patterns
[in South Korea] between 1985-1995. Various death rates and ratios are
calculated using death registration data. Mortality trends are analyzed
by regression analysis, and life tables are constructed." Trends
are examined according to causes of death, sex, and
age.
Correspondence: K.-A. Park, National Statistical
Office, Vital Statistics Division, 647-15 Yoksam-dong, Ilangnam-gu,
Seoul, Republic of Korea. E-mail: kap@nso.go.kr. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40229 Shkolnikov, Vladimir M.
The Russian health crisis of the 1990s in mortality
dimensions. Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies
Working Paper Series, No. 97.01, Mar 1997. Harvard University, Center
for Population and Development Studies: Cambridge, Massachusetts. In
Eng.
This paper focuses on the increase in Russian mortality during
the 1990s. This "is primarily related to enormous increases in
mortality from external causes of death and premature deaths from
cardiovascular diseases in adult ages. Sharp rises in mortality from
homicides, accidental poisonings by alcohol, and suicides suggest
growing alcoholism and criminal activity in the country. Reversals in
mortality due to infectious diseases and some avoidable causes of death
indicate degradation in health sanitary systems. Upturns in mortality
rates for ill-defined categories and in deaths with unspecified age are
probably linked with incomplete recording of violent death and growing
number of deaths of homeless or marginal people. Mortality increase was
steeper in towns than in rural areas. Regional differences in life
expectancy became substantially wider due to greater decreases in many
territories of the North and Siberia and also in Moscow and St.
Petersburg. Mortality increase was probably more pronounced among the
less educated people."
Correspondence: Harvard
University, Center for Population and Development Studies, 9 Bow
Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.
65:40230 Smith, Betty L.; Martin, Joyce A.;
Ventura, Stephanie J. Births and deaths: preliminary data
for July 1997-June 1998. NCHS National Vital Statistics Reports,
Vol. 47, No. 22, Jul 29, 1999. 31 pp. U.S. National Center for Health
Statistics [NCHS]: Hyattsville, Maryland. In Eng.
"This report
presents preliminary data on births and deaths in the United States
from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) for the 12 months
ending June 1998. U.S. data on births are shown by age, race, and
Hispanic origin of mother. Natality data on marital status, prenatal
care, cesarean delivery, and low birthweight are also presented.
Mortality data presented include leading causes of death and infant
mortality."
Correspondence: U.S. National Center for
Health Statistics, 6525 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, MD 20782-2003.
E-mail: nchsquery@cdc.gov. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40231 Tabeau, Ewa; Ekamper, Peter; Huisman,
Corina; Bosch, Alinda. Improving overall mortality
forecasts by analysing cause-of-death, period and cohort effects in
trends. European Journal of Population/Revue Européenne de
Démographie, Vol. 15, No. 2, Jun 1999. 153-83 pp. Dordrecht,
Netherlands. In Eng. with sum. in Fre.
"The major goal of this
study is to propose improvements in the methods for forecasting overall
mortality. In order to reach this goal, three types of trend-oriented
forecasts have been studied. Each type of forecast is conditional on
developments in one of the three factors, period, cohort and cause of
death, which are know to represent symptomatic measures of certain
causal mechanisms. Mortality projections have been made for four
developed European countries: France, Italy, the Netherlands and
Norway. The projections are based on observed mortality data over the
years 1950-1994 and cohorts born in the nineteenth and twentieth
century. The results of the analyses do not show a best solution,
though the cause-of-death approach looks the most promising. However,
the period and cohort approaches certainly have additional value in the
forecasting process."
Correspondence: E. Tabeau,
Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute, Lange Houtstraat
19, Postbus 11650, 2502 AR The Hague, Netherlands. E-mail:
tabeau@nidi.nl. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40232 Timæus, Ian M.
Mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa. In: Health and mortality:
issues of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and
Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L.
Cliquet. 1999. 110-31 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
This is a general
review of the situation concerning mortality in Africa south of the
Sahara. There are sections on availability of data, infant and child
mortality, and adult mortality. The author notes an improvement in data
availability because of the Demographic and Health Survey program,
although major gaps in the available data on adult mortality, and in
particular on AIDS mortality, still persist.
Correspondence:
I. M. Timæus, London School of Hygiene and Tropical
Medicine, Centre for Population Studies, Department of Epidemiology and
Population Sciences, 49-51 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3DP, England.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40233 United States. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention [CDC] (Atlanta, Georgia). Mortality
patterns--United States, 1997. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly
Report, Vol. 48, No. 30, Aug 6, 1999. 664-8 pp. Atlanta, Georgia. In
Eng.
"In 1997, a total of 2,314,245 deaths were registered in
the United States--445 fewer than the record high of 2,314,690 in 1996.
The overall age-adjusted death rate was 479.1 per 100,000 standard
(1940) population, the lowest ever recorded. In 1997, nearly two thirds
of deaths resulted from heart disease, cancer, and stroke. This report
summarizes mortality patterns in 1997 and compares them with patterns
in 1996."
Correspondence: Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30333. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40234 Valkovics, Emil. On some
properties of mortality rates. Hungarian Statistical Review, Vol.
77, No. 3, 1999. 95-115 pp. Budapest, Hungary. In Eng.
"The
first part of the paper underlines the [need] to consider in the
analysis of mortality the double nature of general age-specific
mortality rates: they determine with the number and age distribution of
persons exposed to the risk of dying the number and the age
distribution of the deceased. An attempt is made to separate the impact
of these two roles. The second part of the contribution describes the
method of decomposition of the differences between the life
expectancies at birth (and at higher ages) elaborated and used in the
Demographic Research Institute of the [Hungarian Central Statistical
Office], based on the evidence that the life expectancy at birth may be
defined...as the mean age of all the deceased of the life table and
this mean age is equal to the weighted arithmetic mean of the mean ages
of victims of different causes of death."
Correspondence:
E. Valkovics, Kozponti Statisztikai Hivatal, Institute of
Demographic Research, Keleti Karoly U.5-7, 1525 Budapest II, Hungary.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40235 Wilmoth, John R.; Horiuchi,
Shiro. Rectangularization revisited: variability of age at
death within human populations. Demography, Vol. 36, No. 4, Nov
1999. 475-95 pp. Silver Spring, Maryland. In Eng.
"Rectangularization of human survival curves is associated
with decreasing variability in the distribution of ages at death. This
variability, as measured by the interquartile range of life table ages
at death, has decreased from about 65 years to 15 years since 1751 in
Sweden. Most of this decline occurred between the 1870s and the 1950s.
Since then, variability in age at death has been nearly constant in
Sweden, Japan, and the United States, defying predictions of a
continuing rectangularization. The United States is characterized by a
relatively high degree of variability, compared with both Sweden and
Japan. We suggest that the historical compression of mortality may have
had significant psychological and behavioral
impacts."
Correspondence: J. R. Wilmoth, University of
California, Department of Demography, 2232 Piedmont Avenue, Berkeley,
CA 94720. E-mail: jrw@demog.berkeley.edu. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40236 Yan, Yuk Yee. The
influence of weather on human mortality in Hong Kong. Social
Science and Medicine, Vol. 50, No. 3, Feb 2000. 419-27 pp. Oxford,
England. In Eng.
"This study is the first attempt to
investigate mortality seasonality and weather-mortality relationships
in Hong Kong from 1980 to 1994. Monthly mortality data from all causes
of death, neoplasm, circulatory and respiratory diseases were obtained
from the Census and Statistics Department and the weather data were
obtained from the Hong Kong Observatory. Regression analyses and ANOVA
were employed. Significant winter peaks in sex specific and total
deaths from all causes, circulatory and respiratory diseases were
ascertained. Cancer mortality, however, was not seasonal. Mortality
seasonality only existed in age groups 45-64 and greater than 65.... A
significant negative association between minimum temperature and a
positive relationship between cloud and deaths were found. This
suggests that colder and cloudy conditions may heighten
mortality."
Correspondence: Y. Y. Yan, Hong Kong
Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, China. E-mail:
yyan@ctsc.hkbu.edu.hk. Location: Princeton University Library
(PR).
65:40237 Zatonski, Witold. The
dynamics of mortality in Poland. In: Health and mortality: issues
of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and
Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L.
Cliquet. 1999. 227-61 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
An analysis of
mortality trends in Poland from 1988 to 1994, based on official data,
is presented. Two main phases are identified. "The increase in
mortality from non-medical causes in 1988-1991, especially among young
men, seems to have been chiefly the result of a sudden increase in
alcohol consumption and its consequences. More impressive and positive
is the second phase, involving the large decline in mortality in
1991-1996, principally involving premature deaths from cardiovascular
diseases. This process, although difficult to interpret definitively,
is probably chiefly due to the changes in the dietary patterns of the
Polish population that followed the introduction of a market
economy."
Correspondence: W. Zatonski, Maria
Sklodowska-Curie Memorial Cancer Centre and Institute of Oncology,
Department of Epidemiology and Cancer Prevention, 02-781 Warsaw,
Poland. E-mail: zatonskiw@coi.waw.pl. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
Studies dealing primarily with fetal and neonatal mortality, except those dealing with spontaneous abortions, which are classified under F.3. Sterility and Other Pathology, and those studies dealing with induced abortions, which are classified under F.4.5. Induced Abortion. Perinatal mortality is defined as mortality occurring between the twenty-eighth week of gestation and the seventh day of life.
65:40238 Alexander, Greg R.; Tompkins, Mark
E.; Allen, Marilee C.; Hulsey, Thomas C. Trends and racial
differences in birth weight and related survival. Maternal and
Child Health Journal, Vol. 3, No. 1, Jun 1999. 71-9 pp. New York, New
York. In Eng.
"In the past two decades, infant mortality rates
in the United States declined in African-American and White
populations. Despite this, racial disparities in infant mortality rates
have increased and rates of low birth weight deliveries have shown
little change. In this study, we examine temporal changes in birth
weight distributions, birth weight specific neonatal mortality, and the
birth weight threshold for an adverse risk of survival within both
racial groups in order to explore the mechanisms for the disparities in
infant mortality rates.... Single live births born to South Carolina
resident mothers between 1975 and 1994 and considered White or
African-American based on the mother's report of maternal race on the
birth certificate were selected for investigation.... Despite
significant increases in very low birth weight percentages, neonatal
mortality rates markedly declined. Birth weight specific neonatal
mortality decreased for both races, although greater reductions accrued
to White low birth weight infants."
Correspondence: G.
R. Alexander, University of Alabama, School of Public Health,
Department of Maternal and Child Health, 320A Ryals Building, 1665
University Boulevard, Birmingham, AL 35294-0022. E-mail:
greg.alexander@uab.edu. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40239 Gourbin, Catherine.
Fetal mortality: definitions and levels. [La mortalité
foetale: définitions et niveaux.] In: Morbidité,
Mortalité: Problèmes de Mesure, Facteurs d'Evolution,
Essai de Prospective. Colloque international de Sinaia (2-6 septembre
1996). 1998. 91-107 pp. Association Internationale des
Démographes de Langue Française [AIDELF]: Paris, France;
Presses Universitaires de France: Paris, France. In Fre.
The author
examines some of the problems associated with measuring fetal
mortality. Some of the differences in the criteria for registering
fetal deaths in European countries are described, and the impacts of
the methods chosen on levels of fetal mortality are noted. The chapter
ends with an analysis of the quality of the Hungarian data, which are
available for fetal deaths regardless of length of
gestation.
Correspondence: C. Gourbin, Université
Catholique de Louvain, Institut de Démographie, 1 place
Montesquieu, B.P. 17, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40240 Liljestrand, Jerker.
Commentary: reducing perinatal and maternal mortality in the world:
the major challenges. British Journal of Obstetrics and
Gynaecology, Vol. 106, No. 9, Sep 1999. 877-80 pp. Oxford, England. In
Eng.
The major challenges to be faced if perinatal and maternal
mortality is to be further reduced around the world are examined. The
relationship between reducing levels of mortality from such causes and
successful development programs in developing countries is
analyzed.
Correspondence: J. Liljestrand, World Health
Organization, Department of Reproductive Health and Research, 1211
Geneva 27, Switzerland. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40241 Rajan, S. Irudaya; Nair, P.
Mohanachandran. Is the IMR in Kerala as low as 12?
Beginning an exploration. Demography India, Vol. 28, No. 1,
Jan-Jun 1999. 131-44 pp. Delhi, India. In Eng.
"This brief
note has two objectives: Firstly to explore the possible reasons of
high still birth rate and peri-natal mortality in Kerala [India];
secondly, why the SRS [Sample Registration System] underestimates the
IMR [infant mortality rate] as low as 15? In the process, we also
assess the reasons for [the] high infant mortality
rate."
Correspondence: S. I. Rajan, Centre for
Development Studies, Prasanthnagar Road, Ulloor, Thiruvananthapuram 695
011, Kerala, India. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40242 Wang, P. D.; Lin, R. S.
Perinatal mortality in Taiwan. Public Health, Vol. 113, No. 1,
Jan 1999. 27-33 pp. Basingstoke, England. In Eng.
"Information
on perinatal deaths [in Taiwan] was obtained from 310 women by
collecting detailed obstetric histories dating from marriage to the
start of the survey. These histories were compared to those of 688 age
matched controls. Potential risk factors, levels and time trends of
perinatal mortality in Taiwan were examined and factors underlying
stillbirths and early neonatal deaths were also compared using
conditional logistic regression analyses." The data were collected
in 1991-1992. A decline of nearly 56% occurred in perinatal mortality
over the 35-year period prior to the survey. Factors associated with
perinatal mortality were maternal age, parity, and birth
intervals.
Correspondence: P. D. Wang, Wanhwa District
Health Center, 152 Tung-Yuan Street, Taipei, Taiwan. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
Studies of infant mortality under one year of age, including neonatal mortality occurring after the seventh day of life, and childhood mortality after one year of age. The subject of infanticide, deliberate or implied, is also classified under this heading.
65:40243 Aaby, Peter. Are men
weaker or do their sisters talk too much? Sex differences in childhood
mortality and the construction of "biological"
differences. In: The methods and uses of anthropological
demography, edited by Alaka M. Basu and Peter Aaby. 1998. 223-45 pp.
Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. In Eng.
Reasons for sex
differences in childhood mortality in developing countries are
analyzed, with particular reference to differences in mortality from
measles. "The paper analyses how disease transmission patterns may
produce severe infection and mortality differences by sex or age. The
focus is the interaction between behaviour patterns and disease
transmission, a reality that may interact in important ways with
patterns of differential or preferential treatment of the sexes."
The author notes that infections are more severe when contracted from
someone at home than from someone outside, and that it can affect sex
differentials in mortality from a disease, if cultural or other factors
mean that one sex is more likely than the other to catch diseases at
home or away from the home. The need for sex-specific vaccines is also
noted.
Correspondence: P. Aaby, University of Copenhagen,
Department of Epidemiology, Frue Plads/Noerregade 10, P.O. Box 2177,
1017 Copenhagen K, Denmark. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40244 Aguirre, Alejandro.
Extension of the preceding-birth technique. [Extensión
del método del hijo previo.] Notas de Población, Vol. 26,
No. 67-68, Jan-Dec 1998. 139-62 pp. Santiago, Chile. In Spa. with sum.
in Eng.
Ways to improve the data needed for the preceding-birth
technique, which is used to produce an index of early childhood
mortality, are examined using data from the Mexican Social Security
Institute. The focus is on the best time to interview the women
concerned in order to obtain accurate information on the survival of
the previous child.
Correspondence: A. Aguirre, El Colegio
de México, Camino al Ajusco 20, 10740 Mexico City, DF, Mexico.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40245 Ahmed, Ferial A.-K.; Hassan, Suzan
A. Covariates of infant and child mortality in Egypt,
1993. In: CDC 26th annual seminar on population issues in the
Middle East, Africa and Asia, 1996. 1997. 550-68 pp. Cairo Demographic
Center: Cairo, Egypt. In Eng.
The main objectives of this study are
to give an overall picture of the main factors affecting infant and
child mortality in Egypt. Data are primarily taken from the Egyptian
Use Effectiveness Survey of 1993.
Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40246 Almgren, Gunnar; Kemp, Susan;
Eisinger, Alison. Appraising the legacy of Hull House: the
role of the United States Children's Bureau in the American mortality
transition. Seattle Population Research Center Working Paper, No.
99-11, [1999]. 39, [vi] pp. University of Washington, Seattle
Population Research Center: Seattle, Washington. In Eng.
"Our
specific focus is an examination of the accomplishments and failures of
the [U.S. Children's Bureau's] efforts to transform the national
calculus of infant mortality. We begin with a review of theoretical
approaches to the mortality transition that occurred between 1900 and
1930, followed by a broad assessment of the philosophy, science, and
methods of the Children's Bureau's infant mortality reduction campaign.
We conclude with an analysis of newly available data from the 1910 and
1920 census micro sample surveys that yields a more complete appraisal
of the bureau's role in promoting infant
survival."
Correspondence: University of Washington,
Seattle Population Research Center, Box 353340, Seattle, WA 98195.
Author's E-mail: mukboy@u.washington.edu. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40247 Bairagi, Radheshyam; Sutradhar,
Santosh C.; Alam, Nurul. Levels, trends and determinants
of child mortality in Matlab, Bangladesh, 1966-1994. Asia-Pacific
Population Journal, Vol. 14, No. 2, Jun 1999. 51-68 pp. Bangkok,
Thailand. In Eng.
"There has been a substantial decline in
child mortality in Bangladesh since the 1940s, particularly in the last
two decades.... Yet, with an infant mortality rate at about 100 deaths
per thousand live births, and an under-five mortality rate of about 130
per thousand (in 1994), child mortality is still a burning problem in
Bangladesh. To develop interventions to reduce infant and child
mortality, it is important to know the factors responsible for
mortality decline, and the factors that work as obstacles to its
further decline in this country." Data for this study came from
the Matlab Demographic Surveillance System (DSS) and the 1974 and 1982
socioeconomic status surveys.
Correspondence: R. Bairagi,
International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh,
G.P.O. Box 128, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh. E-mail: bairagi@icddrb.org.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40248 Behar, Cem; Courbage, Youssef;
Gürsoy, Akile. Economic growth or survival? The
problematic case of child mortality in Turkey. European Journal of
Population/Revue Européenne de Démographie, Vol. 15, No.
3, Sep 1999. 241-78 pp. Dordrecht, Netherlands. In Eng. with sum. in
Fre.
Reasons why levels of child mortality in Turkey have remained
relatively high despite modernization and declining fertility are
examined. "The stresses resulting from economic growth and the
high level of female workforce participation have perhaps tended to
distract women from child care. Also, neither Ottoman nor republican
Turkish traditions have encouraged an enhancement of the status of
childhood. Unconventional sources: ethnology, literature, cinema, are
deployed here to construct an impression of the cultural environment of
the mothers, fathers and families of dead children. Change of
attitudes, very slow as far as childhood is concerned, have not yet
caught up with the transition in fertility. An infant mortality rate of
53 per l,000, accompanying a total fertility rate scarcely higher than
2, is a combination difficult to find anywhere
else."
Correspondence: C. Behar, Institut National
d'Etudes Démographiques, 133 boulevard Davout, 75980 Paris Cedex
14, France. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40249 Bengtsson, Tommy. The
vulnerable child. Economic insecurity and child mortality in
pre-industrial Sweden: a case study of Västanfors, 1757-1850.
European Journal of Population/Revue Européenne de
Démographie, Vol. 15, No. 2, Jun 1999. 117-51 pp. Dordrecht,
Netherlands. In Eng. with sum. in Fre.
"By using
macro-economic time series as time-varying community variables in a
life event analysis framework for micro data on individuals, we have
found that mortality among children over the age of one year in
pre-industrial Sweden was directly dependent upon economic
fluctuations, a fact which has not been demonstrated before. The impact
is stronger among the lower classes than the well-to-do. It is
particularly strong in years following an extremely poor harvest.
Another new finding is that smallpox mortality among children is
determined by economic fluctuations. However, infant mortality seems to
follow its own rhythms independently of changes in economic
conditions."
Correspondence: T. Bengtsson, University
of Lund, Department of Economic History, 221 00 Lund, Sweden.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40250 Bhattacharya, Prabir C.
Socio-economic determinants of early childhood mortality: a study
of three Indian states. Demography India, Vol. 28, No. 1, Jan-Jun
1999. 47-63 pp. Delhi, India. In Eng.
"The important
determinants of child survival in less developed countries include
infection, food intake, nutritional status, disease control, maternal
factors and injury. The socio-economic factors influence child survival
by operating through these basic proximate determinants. The purpose of
this paper is to examine how the social and environmental context in
which a child is raised affects his or her survival chances in three
states in northern India, viz., Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar
Pradesh. The analysis is based on the 1981 census
data."
Correspondence: P. C. Bhattacharya, Heriot-Watt
University, Department of Economics, Riccarton, Edinburgh EH14 4AS,
Scotland. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40251 Chay, Kenneth Y.; Greenstone,
Michael. The impact of air pollution on infant mortality:
evidence from geographic variation in pollution shocks induced by a
recession. NBER Working Paper, No. 7442, Dec 1999. 50, [22] pp.
National Bureau of Economic Research [NBER]: Cambridge, Massachusetts.
In Eng.
"This study uses sharp, differential air quality
changes across sites attributable to geographic variation in the
effects of the 1981-82 recession [in the United States] to estimate the
relationship between infant mortality and particulates air pollution.
It is shown that in the narrow period of 1980-82, there was substantial
variation across counties in changes in particulates pollution, and
that these differential pollution reductions appear to be orthogonal to
changes in a multitude of other factors that may be related to infant
mortality."
Correspondence: National Bureau of
Economic Research, 1050 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Author's E-mail: kenchay@econ.berkeley.edu. Location:
Princeton University Library (PF).
65:40252 Choe, Minja Kim; Diamond, Ian;
Steele, Fiona A.; Kim, Seung Kwon. Son preference, family
building process and child mortality. In: Too young to die: genes
or gender? 1998. 208-22 pp. UN Department of Economic and Social
Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
"The present chapter
presents an assessment of whether son preference results in excess
female child mortality indirectly through the family building process.
A review of previous work will be followed by in-depth case studies,
using recent data from Egypt, Bangladesh and the Republic of Korea,
three countries that are characterized by a high level of son
preference and excess female child
mortality...."
Correspondence: M. K. Choe, East-West
Center, Program on Population, 1601 East-West Road, Honolulu, HI 96848.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40253 David, Patricia H.
Family-building patterns and childhood mortality: a family-level
analysis. Journal of Biosocial Science, Vol. 31, No. 4, Oct 1999.
463-85 pp. Cambridge, England. In Eng.
"This paper analyses
mortality risk in sibships to explore the relationship between family
formation factors and other household characteristics that identify
women whose families are at higher risk. The analysis allows for the
fact that reproductive behaviour may be modified by the family's prior
experience of child death, using simultaneous equations methods to
purge the model of the `feedback' effects of death on the endogenous
variable, childbearing pace.... Other aspects of family formation
patterns are good indicators of which families are likely to experience
excess risks to their children. These factors are associated with
maternal education...." Data are from the Round One Demographic
and Health Surveys in Peru (1986) and Egypt
(1988).
Correspondence: P. H. David, Population Reference
Bureau, 1875 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 520, Washington, D.C.
20009-5728. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40254 DiLiberti, John H.; Jackson, Cynthia
R. Long-term trends in childhood infectious disease
mortality rates. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No.
12, Dec 1999. 1,883-5 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
Long-term trends
in childhood infectious disease mortality rates (CIDMR) in the United
States from 1968 to 1992 are assessed using data from the Compressed
Mortality File and the Multiple Cause of Death Files from the National
Center for Health Statistics. "U.S. CIDMR declined continuously
from 1968 to 1996, although the rate of decline slowed after 1974.
Respiratory and central nervous system categories declined most;
HIV-related deaths offset these declines somewhat." Comparisons
are made with English data for 1861-1964.
Correspondence:
J. H. DiLiberti, University of Illinois College of Medicine,
Department of Pediatrics, 530 NE Glen Oak Avenue, Peoria, IL 61637.
E-mail: jhd@uic.edu. Location: Princeton University Library
(SZ).
65:40255 Gourbin, Catherine; Wunsch,
Guillaume. Paternal age and infant mortality. Genus,
Vol. 55, No. 1-2, Jan-Jun 1999. 61-72 pp. Rome, Italy. In Eng. with
sum. in Ita; Fre.
"The main objective of the study is to
examine whether there is a significant association between infant
mortality and age of the parents. The study is based on individual
registration forms for live births and infant deaths collected in
Hungary from 1984 to 1988. As suspected, older women have higher infant
mortality rates, but infant mortality rates increase also when the age
of the father increases, particularly above 35. Although statistically
significant, the effect of age remains slighter than that of other
characteristics such as previous foetal deaths, or induced abortions.
Higher education for fathers and especially for mothers might also
improve the probability of survival of the
child."
Correspondence: C. Gourbin, Université
Catholique de Louvain, Institut de Démographie, 1 place
Montesquieu, B.P. 17, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40256 Gupta, H. S.; Baghel, A.
Infant mortality in the Indian slums: case studies of Calcutta
Metropolis and Raipur City. International Journal of Population
Geography, Vol. 5, No. 5, Sep-Oct 1999. 353-66 pp. Chichester, England.
In Eng.
"Based on data collected through interview of 2,142
mothers who had experienced live births and/or infant deaths within one
year preceding the date of survey in selected slums of Calcutta
Metropolis and Raipur City, this study attempts to elucidate and
explain the levels, differentials, causes and determinants of infant
mortality in the Indian slums. The infant mortality rate (IMR) in the
slums was found to be quite high but lower than that in rural India,
underlining the importance of `urban residence' as a major controlling
factor of infant mortality. The IMR in the slums of Calcutta was about
one and a half times that in the slums of Raipur, suggesting that slum
infant mortality is far worse in metropolises than in smaller
cities."
Correspondence: H. S. Gupta, Pt. Ravishankar
Shukla University, School of Studies in Geography, Raipur, Madhya
Pradesh 492 010, India. E-mail: bksharma@gwrl.vsnl.net.in.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40257 Hassane, Nekrache. Study
of infant mortality in Morocco based on data from "Enquête
de Panel sur la Population et la Santé, 1995" In: CDC
27th annual seminar on population issues in the Middle East, Africa and
Asia. 1998. 696-712 pp. Cairo Demographic Centre: Cairo, Egypt. In Eng.
"The principal aims of this study are: to estimate levels and
trends of infant mortality in Morocco; to examine the socio- and
bio-demographic factors which affect levels and [trends] of infant
mortality.... The data on which this study is based were provided by
the 1995 Moroccan Demographic and Health Survey."
Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40258 Herman-Giddens, Marcia E.; Brown,
Gail; Verbiest, Sarah; Carlson, Pamela J.; Hooten, Elizabeth G.;
Howell, Eleanor; Butts, John D. Underascertainment of
child abuse mortality in the United States. JAMA: Journal of the
American Medical Association, Vol. 282, No. 5, Aug 4, 1999. 463-7 pp.
Chicago, Illinois. In Eng.
The authors "describe the true
incidence of fatal child abuse, determine the proportion of child abuse
deaths missed by the vital records system, and provide estimates of the
extent of abuse homicides in young children [using a] retrospective
descriptive study of child abuse homicides that occurred over a 10-year
period in North Carolina from 1985-1994.... We found that significant
underascertainment of child abuse homicides in vital records systems
persists despite greater societal attention to abuse
fatalities."
Correspondence: M. E. Herman-Giddens,
1450 Russell Chapel Road, Pittsboro, NC 27312. E-mail:
mherman-giddens@unc.edu. Location: Princeton University
Library (SZ).
65:40259 Hill, Kenneth; Figueroa,
Maria-Elena. Child mortality estimation by time since
first birth. Hopkins Population Center Papers on Population, No.
99-05, Jun 1999. 12 pp. Johns Hopkins University, School of Hygiene and
Public Health, Johns Hopkins Population Center: Baltimore, Maryland. In
Eng.
"This paper develops and illustrates a methodology [for
estimating child mortality] based on time since first birth using a
model of fertility by time since first birth and model life tables.
This methodology avoids the selection bias of the age-based method, and
is applicable to all populations regardless of marriage customs, but
does require an extra question, on date of or age at first birth, on
the census or survey instrument. An application to data from Haiti
shows the method to give estimates similar to those from a subsequent
birth history."
Correspondence: K. Hill, Johns Hopkins
University, Department of Population and Family Health Sciences, 615
North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205. E-mail: khill@jhsph.edu.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40260 Huang, Rongqing. A study
on a childhood mortality model. Chinese Journal of Population
Science, Vol. 10, No. 2, 1998. 187-98 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
"In this study, a mortality function model for childhood is
established on the basis of an analysis of empirical data, comparison
of different mortality models in terms of their accuracy, and
discussion of the applicability of those models under different
circumstances.... Empirical data from Japan's complete life tables are
used to evaluate the accuracy of the models."
Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40261 Jatrana, Santosh.
Determinants of infant mortality in a backward region of North
India: Are socioeconomic or demographic factors dominant? Working
Papers in Demography, No. 82, 1999. 22 pp. Australian National
University, Research School of Social Sciences, Demography Program:
Canberra, Australia. In Eng.
"Several socioeconomic factors
have been found to be associated with infant and childhood mortality in
the developing countries. However, the relative importance of
socioeconomic and demographic factors in influencing infant mortality,
varies with the level of socioeconomic development of the nation....
This paper will explore this hypothesis in a backward region of India
(Mewat region of Haryana State), with a view to contributing to a
better understanding of the relative importance of socioeconomic and
demographic factors on infant mortality. The data employed in this
study were obtained by conducting a field survey between April 1996 and
February 1997 of factors affecting infant and child survival in the Nuh
and Taoru blocks of the Mewat region of Haryana State. [A] Cox
proportional hazards model was used to analyse the relative effects of
demographic and the socioeconomic factors. Finally, some policy
implications of the findings are
suggested."
Correspondence: Australian National
University, Research School of Social Sciences, Demography Program,
Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40262 Jhamba, Tapiwa. Regional
variations in childhood mortality in Zimbabwe. Geography, Vol. 84,
No. 4, Oct 1999. 319-30 pp. Sheffield, England. In Eng.
Data from
the 1992 census are used to analyze differences in childhood mortality
by district in Zimbabwe. "A zone of high mortality could be
clearly identified along the border with Mozambique in the east and
north-east, and along the border with Zambia in the north-west. The
south-west, covering Matebeleland North and South and part of the
Midlands, was generally characterised by low childhood mortality. The
spatial variations in childhood mortality were related to a combination
of the effects of variations in natural agro-ecological conditions and
the historical spatial patterns of socio-economic development.
Relatively strong relationships existed between district childhood
mortality levels and the level of fertility and level of education.
Cultural factors, and variations in the natural physical and climatic
conditions, which in turn related to the incidence and prevalence of
tropical diseases (such as malaria) also influence regional mortality
levels in Zimbabwe."
Correspondence: T. Jhamba,
University of Zimbabwe, Centre for Population Studies, M.P. 167, Mount
Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe. E-mail: jhamba@compcentre.uz.ac.zw.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40263 Kertzer, David I.; Sigle, Wendy;
White, Michael J. Childhood mortality and quality of care
among abandoned children in nineteenth-century Italy. Population
Studies, Vol. 53, No. 3, Nov 1999. 303-15 pp. London, England. In Eng.
"A great deal of scholarly attention has been devoted in
recent years to the large-scale abandonment of newborn babies in the
European past, with special emphasis given to the staggering rates of
infant mortality among the foundlings. For the most part, scholars have
agreed with the foundling home officials of the past in assigning much
of the blame for this excess mortality to the women who took the
foundlings as wetnurses and subsequently as foster mothers. This
article takes issue with this view, based on an examination of the
children abandoned at the foundling home of Bologna, Italy in the
nineteenth century. Four cohorts of foundlings are examined--those
abandoned in 1809-30, 1829-30, 1849-50, and 1869-70 (N=3,615)--as we
trace the changing pattern of infant and early childhood mortality.
Longitudinal methods are used in examining the life course of these
foundlings and the determinants of their
mortality."
Correspondence: D. I. Kertzer, Brown
University, Department of Anthropology, Providence, RI 02912.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40264 Krishnamoorthy, S.; Rajna, P.
N. Graduating childhood deaths and survivorship function
with the model by Mukherjee and Islam. Demography India, Vol. 28,
No. 1, Jan-Jun 1999. 13-21 pp. Delhi, India. In Eng.
Some models
that have been developed for the analysis of infant mortality in India
are reviewed. "Recently, Chauhan (1997) suggested use of a model
proposed by Mukherjee and Islam in reliability analysis. Chauhan
concludes that this model effectively describes the age distribution of
early age deaths. This paper re-examines the adequacy of the model in
describing the distribution of deaths at early ages of life and also
modifies the model for graduating the survivorship function.... The
model proposed by Mukherjee and Islam in the study of reliability and
introduced by Chauhan to graduate infant deaths is tested for its
efficacy in describing not only the age pattern of childhood deaths but
also the survivorship probabilities."
Correspondence:
S. Krishnamoorthy, Bharathiar University, Department of Population
Studies, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu 641 046, India. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40265 Luther, Norman Y.; Thapa,
Shyam. Infant and child mortality in Nepal. East-West
Center Working Papers, Population Series, No. 105, Apr 1999. iv, 94 pp.
East-West Center: Honolulu, Hawaii. In Eng.
"The 1996 Nepal
Family Health Survey (NFHS), part of the World Demographic and Health
Surveys, collected information on fertility, family planning, and
maternal and child health from 8,429 ever-married women aged 15-49....
This report includes measures of levels and trends of mortality before
age 5 by 5-year periods preceding the survey, as well as differentials
of mortality by selected socioeconomic background characteristics,
demographic characteristics, and health care
behavior."
Correspondence: East-West Center, Program
on Population, 1601 East-West Road, Honolulu, HI 96848. E-mail:
poppubs@ewc.hawaii.edu. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40266 Malcoe, Lorraine H.; Shaw, Gary M.;
Lammer, Edward J.; Herman, Allen A. The effect of
congenital anomalies on mortality risk in white and black infants.
American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No. 6, Jun 1999. 887-92 pp.
Washington, D.C. In Eng.
"This population-based study examined
the effect of all major congenital anomalies on the mortality of White
and Black infants [in California] by infant sex, birthweight,
gestational age, and lethality of the anomaly. The study also
determined the total contribution of anomalies of infant mortality....
The contribution of congenital anomalies to mortality of both low-
(<2500g) and normal-birth-weight infants is substantially higher
than previously estimated, representing a large public health problem
for both Black and White infants."
Correspondence: L.
H. Malcoe, University of Oklahoma, College of Public Health, Department
of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, P.O. Box 26901, CHB-309, Oklahoma
City, OK 73190. E-mail: lorraine-malcoe@ouhsc.edu. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40267 Matthews, Zoe; Diamond, Ian.
The expanded programme on immunisation: mortality consequences and
demographic impact in developing countries. Genus, Vol. 55, No.
1-2, Jan-Jun 1999. 73-100 pp. Rome, Italy. In Eng. with sum. in Ita;
Fre.
"The aims of the paper are to evaluate the mortality
impact of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation by estimating lives
saved, and to understand its wider demographic implications by
performing population projections to the year 2025. Results show that
the life-saving impact of EPI campaigns in all developing regions is
high, especially in countries where mortality is currently high, for
example in sub-Saharan Africa. We estimate that approximately 5.5
million children per year are currently being saved in the major
developing countries of the world. Prolonging the life of these
immunised children could add up to 4.5 years to life expectancy in some
countries."
Correspondence: Z. Matthews, University of
Southampton, Department of Social Statistics, Southampton SO17 2BJ,
England. E-mail: zm2@socsci.soton.ac.uk. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40268 Measham, Anthony R.; Rao, Krishna D.;
Jamison, Dean T.; Wang, Jia; Singh, Alaka. Reducing infant
mortality and fertility, 1975-1990: performance at all-India and state
levels. Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 34, No. 22, Jun 4,
1999. 1,359-67 pp. Mumbai, India. In Eng.
"This paper uses
recently available data from India and from other countries to assess
the role of income changes and other changes over time in determining
infant mortality rates (IMR) and total fertility rates (TFR). It uses
this information to assess the performance on these outcomes of India
relative to other countries and of individual Indian states relative to
the all-India average. The paper's main conclusions are: (i) While
income does have some influence on health outcomes, technical progress
and other factors are substantially more important.... (ii) India's
performance on IMR falls short of what would be expected given results
of other countries of its income. (iii) By contrast, India's
performance in reducing TFR is substantially better than would be
predicted from its income. (iv) Not surprisingly states vary
substantially in the performance relative to their income level and the
all-India average values of IMR and TFR."
Location:
Princeton University Library (PF).
65:40269 Mellington, Nicole; Cameron,
Lisa. Female education and child mortality in
Indonesia. Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies, Vol. 35, No.
3, Dec 1999. 115-44 pp. Canberra, Australia. In Eng.
"This
paper uses a sample of 6,620 women from the 1994 Indonesian Demographic
and Health Survey to examine the relationship between female education
and child mortality in Indonesia. Female education is measured in terms
of both years of education and literacy. Both primary education and
secondary schooling significantly decrease the probability of child
death, while literacy plays an insignificant role. When the sample is
divided into urban and rural locations, primary and secondary education
are significant in both areas in reducing the likelihood of a mother
experiencing child mortality. The benefits of public and private
infrastructure appear to differ in rural and urban areas. The results
confirm that investment in female human capital lowers the probability
of child mortality."
Correspondence: N. Mellington,
University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia.
Location: Princeton University Library (PF).
65:40270 Murakoshi, Kazunori.
Infant and child mortality of the Daimyo class in the Tokugawa
Period (1651-1850): a peer's genealogical data. Jinkogaku
Kenkyu/Journal of Population Studies, No. 24, Jun 1999. 15-31 pp.
Tokyo, Japan. In Jpn. with sum. in Eng.
"A demographic
analysis of commoners in cities in the Tokugawa period [in Japan] tends
to face difficulty due to the loss of population registers called
shummon aratame cho. With genealogical data of [the] daimyo class,
however, we can attempt such an analysis by examining the mortality
rate in [the] daimyo family in Edo and other castle towns, assuming
that this indicates the mortality rate of commoners. In the period from
the late 17th century to the early 19th century, [the] infant mortality
rate is estimated at 193.2 [per thousand] and the child mortality rate
at 229.6 [per thousand. These rates] begin to rise in the late 18th
century and reach [their] highest in the mid-19th
century."
Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40271 Pelletier, David L.
Malnutrition, morbidity and child mortality in developing
countries. In: Too young to die: genes or gender? 1998. 109-32 pp.
UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In
Eng.
The relationships among malnutrition, morbidity, and child
mortality in developing countries are examined. "One purpose of
the present chapter is to clarify the nature of malnutrition itself and
summarize recent evidence concerning its relation to child mortality.
Another purpose is to investigate the extent to which sex differentials
in nutritional status are related to sex differentials in child
mortality, drawing upon community-based prospective studies and
cross-national comparisons."
Correspondence: D. L.
Pelletier, Cornell University, Division of Nutritional Sciences, Savage
Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853-6501. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40272 Pinnelli, Antonella; Mancini,
Paola. Mortality peaks in Italy in the late l9th and early
20th centuries: trends by age and sex. European Journal of
Population/Revue Européenne de Démographie, Vol. 14, No.
4, 1998-1999. 333-65 pp. Dordrecht, Netherlands. In Eng. with sum. in
Fre.
"Infant and youth mortality fell steeply between the
unification of Italy and the 1930s, particularly due to the decline in
infectious and parasitic diseases. A number of mortality crises,
however, at times halted this decline: the 1908 Calabria-Sicily
earthquake, the 1915 Marsica earthquake, World War I and 1918 Spanish
influenza outbreak. This paper focuses [on] the repercussions of these
events [for] the general survival status of young people from birth to
puberty, as well as the main pathologies responsible for the rise in
mortality. An analysis of differences in mortality according to sex
during the various crises was also performed to ascertain whether the
more difficult survival conditions during these periods affected males
and females equally."
Correspondence: A. Pinnelli,
Dipartimento di Scienze Demografiche, via Nomentana 41, 00161 Rome,
Italy. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40273 Ramírez, Mirta L.
Impact of environmental factors on infant mortality. Chaco
Province--1991. [Incidencia de factores ambientales en la
mortalidad infantil. Provincia del Chaco--1991.] Revista
Geográfica, No. 122, Jul-Dec 1995. 169-98 pp. Mexico City,
Mexico. In Spa. with sum. in Eng.
"The Chaco Province is
located in the Northeast of Argentina.... This article reflects the
distribution of neonatal and post-neonatal infant mortality considering
the six health zones established by the State government, trying to
determine relations between infant and post-neonatal mortality and the
social conditions of the population and, on the other hand, the
relations between the causes of mortality and the above-mentioned
social conditions."
Correspondence: M. L.
Ramírez, Universidad Nacional del Nordeste, Facultad de
Geografía, Chaco, Argentina. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40274 Ramiro Fariñas, Diego; Sanz
Gimeno, Alberto. Internal structures of childhood
mortality (ages 0-4) in twentieth century Spain. Population
Studies Center Research Report, No. 97-392, [1997]. 22 pp. University
of Michigan, Population Studies Center: Ann Arbor, Michigan. In Eng.
"This communication deals with the evolution of infant and
child mortality structure in Spain, during the years 1900, 1930 and
1960. Special emphasis will be put on the decline in mortality for
children between 1 and 4 years of age (specially high in Spain), the
internal structure of infant mortality, and the differences between
rural and urban context."
Correspondence: University
of Michigan, Population Studies Center, 1225 South University Avenue,
Ann Arbor, MI 48104-2590. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40275 Rusman, Roosmalawati; Djohan,
Eniarti; Hull, Terence H. They simply die: searching for
the causes of high infant mortality in Lombok. ISBN 979-8553-43-8.
1999. 100 pp. Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Center for Population
and Manpower Studies: Jakarta, Indonesia; Australian National
University, Research School of Social Sciences, Demography Program:
Canberra, Australia. In Eng. with sum. in Ind.
Reasons for the high
levels of infant and child mortality that have been recorded in the
Indonesian province of Lombok are explored. The method used in the
analysis is of a qualitative nature based on interviews with many of
the people who become involved when children get sick, including
parents, neighbors, traditional healers, religious leaders, and health
center personnel. The authors conclude that, although there are no
simple explanations for these high levels of mortality, many deaths
could be prevented by a combination of improvements in safe birth
practices, good hygiene, adequate nutrition, and beneficial care. The
difficulties that will need to be overcome in order to make these
improvements are discussed.
Correspondence: Indonesian
Institute of Sciences, Center for Population and Manpower Studies,
Gedung Widya Graha Lt. X, Jalan Gatot Subroto 10, Djakarta Selatan,
Indonesia. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40276 Sowards, Kathryn A. What
is the leading cause of infant mortality? A note on the interpretation
of official statistics. American Journal of Public Health, Vol.
89, No. 11, Nov 1999. 1,752-4 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
"According to vital statistics reports, congenital
malformation is the leading cause of infant death in the United States
and accounts for a much greater proportion of infant mortality than
does premature birth. The purpose of this study was to examine the
potential underestimation of prematurity-related mortality in current
vital statistics reports." Official mortality data for 1985, 1991,
and 1996 are used. The results indicate that "the official
statistics significantly understate the role of prematurity-related
mortality. An alternative etiology-based classification designates
prematurity as the underlying cause in approximately one third of all
infant deaths."
Correspondence: K. A. Sowards,
Washington State University, Department of Sociology, 14204 NE Salmon
Creek Avenue, Vancouver, WA 98686. E-mail: sowards@vancouver.wsu.edu.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40277 Sudha, S.; Rajan, S.
Irudaya. Female demographic disadvantage in India
1981-1991: sex selective abortions and female infanticide.
Development and Change, Vol. 30, No. 3, Jul 1999. 585-618 pp. Oxford,
England. In Eng.
"Using evidence from a number of sources
(including the 1981 and 1991 censuses of India, prior research, and NGO
reports), this article examines whether bias against girl children
persists during periods of development and fertility decline, whether
prenatal sex selection has spread in India as elsewhere in Asia, and
whether female vs. male child mortality risks have changed.... The
increased masculinity of period SRBs [sex ratios at birth] in some
areas, together with persistent excess female child mortality and
female infanticide, creates a `double jeopardy' for girl children.
Legislation curbing prenatal sex determination and policy measures
addressing societal female devaluation have had little impact,
suggesting that female demographic disadvantage is unlikely to improve
in the near future."
Correspondence: S. Sudha,
University of North Carolina, Carolina Population Center, University
Square, CB 8120, 124 East Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-3997.
E-mail: sudha@email.unc.edu. Location: Princeton University
Library (PR).
65:40278 Taucher, Erica; Díaz, Nora;
Icaza, Gloria. Matching data on infant mortality and
births in Chile. [Pareo de datos sobre defunciones infantiles y
nacimientos en Chile.] Notas de Población, Vol. 26, No. 67-68,
Jan-Dec 1998. 163-80 pp. Santiago, Chile. In Spa. with sum. in Eng.
"This study compares information on the characteristics of
children and their parents, as contained in birth and death
certificates, and assesses the impact of discrepancies in that
information on the results obtained in calculating differentials in
infant mortality, when data on deaths from one or other of these
sources is used as numerator. For this purpose, data on deaths under
one year of age [in Chile] in the birth cohort for 1994 were paired
with data on the corresponding births. The pairing was done using the
national identification number which appears on both birth and death
certificates. The greatest discrepancies observed were related to the
number of weeks of gestation of the child and the years of school
completed by the parents. However, when comparisons were made between
mortality differentials associated with different variables, it was
found that overall patterns were not affected by differences between
the rates."
Correspondence: E. Taucher, Universidad de
Chile, Avenida Bernardo O'Higgins 1058, Casilla 10-D, Santiago, Chile.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40279 Timæus, Ian; Harris, Katie;
Fairbairn, Francesca. Can use of health care explain sex
differentials in child mortality in the developing world? In: Too
young to die: genes or gender? 1998. 154-78 pp. UN Population Division:
New York, New York. In Eng.
"The present chapter examines
differential use of preventive and curative health-care services by
boys and girls. The focus is on children under the age of five years.
The analysis is comparative in nature. It is based on the national
surveys conducted by the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) programme
during the past decade, supplemented by the National Family health
Survey (NFHS) of India.... The aim is to assess whether inequalities in
patterns of health care are large and pervasive enough to be worth
pursuing as an important part of the explanation of sex differentials
in child mortality." The geographical focus is on developing
countries.
Correspondence: I. Timæus, London School
of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Centre for Population Studies, Keppel
Street, London WC1E 7HT, England. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40280 United Nations. Secretariat (New
York, New York). Levels and trends of sex differentials in
infant, child and under-five mortality. In: Too young to die:
genes or gender? 1998. 84-108 pp. UN Department of Economic and Social
Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
"In the present chapter,
a new set of estimates of infant, child and under-five mortality by sex
is derived, and sex differentials in mortality relative to each of
those indicators are presented. The estimated sex differentials are
based on all available data allowing the estimation of infant and child
mortality by sex for a country. The data and methods used to obtain
estimates of infant, child and under-five mortality by sex are
described.... An analysis of levels and trends of sex differentials in
mortality in childhood [is also presented]; both the relation between
sex differentials in mortality and mortality level, and changes in sex
differentials over time are examined." The geographical focus is
on developing countries.
Correspondence: United Nations
Secretariat, United Nations Population Division, Department for
Economic and Social Affairs, 220 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40281 Villa, S.; Guiscafré, H.;
Martínez, H.; Muñoz, O.; Gutiérrez, G.
Seasonal diarrhoeal mortality among Mexican children. Bulletin
of the World Health Organization, Vol. 77, No. 5, 1999. 375-80 pp.
Geneva, Switzerland. In Eng. with sum. in Fre; Spa.
"The study
investigated the effects on diarrhoeal deaths among under-5-year-old
Mexican children of the following variables: season (summer or winter),
region (north versus south), age group, and place of death... We have
shown that there was a significant reduction in diarrhoeal deaths among
children in Mexico between 1989 and 1995. However, this reduction was
less evident in the winter months, particularly among under-2-year-olds
and in regions where the seasons are well
marked."
Correspondence: S. Villa, Centro
Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, Coordinación de
Investigación Médica, Edificio B, Unidad de Congresos,
4o. Piso, Avenida Cuauhtémoc 330, Colonia Doctores, C.P. 06725,
Mexico City, DF, Mexico. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40282 Waldron, Ingrid. Sex
differences in infant and early childhood mortality: major causes of
death and possible biological causes. In: Too young to die: genes
or gender? 1998. 64-83 pp. UN Department of Economic and Social
Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
The biological factors
associated with differential mortality by sex in infancy and early
childhood are examined in this review of the published literature. Two
major questions are considered: "First, which causes of death
contribute to sex differences in infant and early child mortality in
developing countries? Second, what biological factors contribute to sex
differences for each of the major causes of death? Biological factors
are defined broadly to include: (a) direct genetic effects, such as
X-linked diseases; (b) effects of sex hormones on anatomy, physiology
and behaviour; and (c) physiological differences between males and
females, which may be due primarily to genetic and hormonal effects but
may also be influenced by environmental
factors."
Correspondence: I. Waldron, University of
Pennsylvania, Department of Biology, Leidy Laboratory, Philadelphia, PA
19104-6018. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40283 Wen, Shi Wu; Liu, Shiliang; Joseph,
K. S.; Trouton, Konia; Allen, Alexander. Regional patterns
of infant mortality caused by lethal congenital anomalies.
Canadian Journal of Public Health/Revue Canadienne de Santé
Publique, Vol. 90, No. 5, Sep-Oct 1999. 316-9 pp. Ottawa, Canada. In
Eng. with sum. in Fre.
This article assesses "the regional
patterns of infant mortality due to lethal congenital anomalies, and
the potential reasons for the regional patterns.... The study analyzed
2,507 infant deaths due to lethal congenital anomalies among 1,178,452
live births in 9 of the 12 Canadian provinces and territories from 1990
to 1995 recorded in Statistics Canada's live birth and death data
bases. [Results indicate that] compared with the province of Quebec,
congenital anomaly-attributed infant mortality was higher in
Newfoundland, Saskatchewan, and Alberta.... Despite substantial recent
reductions in lethal congenital anomaly-attributed infant mortality,
there remain major regional variations in infant mortality caused by
certain forms of congenital anomalies including anencephaly and
cardiovascular system anomalies."
Correspondence: S.
W. Wen, Laboratory Centre for Disease Control, Bureau of Reproductive
and Child Health, Tunney's Pasture A-L 060 1E2, Ottawa, Ontario K1A
0L2, Canada. E-mail: Shi_Wu_Wen@hc-sc.gc.ca. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40284 Woldemicael, Gebremariam.
Infant and child mortality in Eritrea: levels, trends, and
determinants. Stockholm University Demography Unit, Dissertation
Series, ISBN 91-7153-973-5. Jul 1999. ix, 277 pp. Stockholm University:
Stockholm, Sweden. In Eng.
This doctoral dissertation has three
main objectives: "first, to estimate age-specific levels, age
patterns and period trends in early mortality at national and
sub-national levels in Eritrea; second, to investigate the major
possible determinants of infant and child mortality; and third, to
discuss implications of the main findings for health policy and future
research directions. The data used for this study come from the 1995
Eritrea Demographic and Health Survey of 5,469 households and 5,054
women in the reproductive age span." The author concludes that
"in order to reduce early mortality in Eritrea, efforts should
focus on health programs that target first-time mothers. Health
education and family planning programs that promote longer birth
intervals should be given special emphasis. The provision of clean
water and toilet facilities must be given greater attention in order to
increase child survival in Eritrea. Resources should be directed
towards lowland communities."
Correspondence:
Stockholm University, Demography Unit, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40285 Worku, Z. B.; Makatjane, T.
J. The impact of a short duration of breast feeding on
child survival in the Maseru District, September-October 1994.
Review of Southern African Studies, Vol. 1, No. 2, Apr 1996. 54-71 pp.
Roma, Lesotho. In Eng.
"Out of 251,000 children under five
years of age in Maseru District, [Lesotho] a random sample of size
4,001 was taken in an attempt to identify factors that strongly
influence child survival. The 74 explanatory variables of the study
were a combination of socio-economic, maternal and child health and
fertility factors. The study revealed that a short duration of breast
feeding was the leading cause of infant mortality and morbidity, and
that rural children were particularly
vulnerable."
Correspondence: Z. B. Worku, National
University of Lesotho, Department of Statistics and Demography, P.O.
Roma 180, Lesotho. Location: Michigan State University
Library, East Lansing, MI.
65:40286 Zakir, Mohammed; Wunnava, Phanindra
V. Factors affecting infant mortality rates: evidence from
cross-sectional data. Applied Economics Letters, Vol. 6, No. 5,
May 1999. 271-3 pp. London, England. In Eng.
"This paper
empirically tests for factors affecting infant mortality rates. Based
on a cross-sectional model (covering 117 countries for the year 1993)
that corrects for heteroscedasticity, the results show that fertility
rates, female participation in the labour force, per capita GNP, and
female literacy rates significantly affect infant mortality rates.
Surprisingly, government expenditure on health-care, as a percentage of
the GNP, does not play a major role in determining infant mortality
rates." The geographical scope is
worldwide.
Correspondence: P. V. Wunnava, Middlebury
College, Department of Economics, Middlebury, VT 05753. E-mail:
Phani.Wunnava@middlebury.edu. Location: Princeton University
Library (SXF).
Studies of age-specific mortality and of mortality in special groups defined by age.
65:40287 Bah, Sulaiman.
Diagnostic tests on assessing the quality of maternal orphanhood
data from the 1996 South African census and implications for the
indirect estimation of adult mortality. Population Studies Centre
Discussion Paper, No. 99-5, ISBN 0-7714-2191-5. Mar 1999. 41 pp.
University of Western Ontario, Population Studies Centre: London,
Canada. In Eng.
"In this paper, the maternal orphanhood data
from the 1996 [South African] census have been subjected to a battery
of diagnostic tests. The diagnostics attempted in the paper have shown
that among the factors that affect the estimates of maternal
orphanhood, the one with the least effect on the mortality estimates is
age misreporting.... It is concluded that more research is needed on
the role of the maternal orphanhood technique in an era of increasing
deaths due to AIDS in some population subgroups and in cases of
increasing ageing and low mortality in other population
subgroups."
Correspondence: University of Western
Ontario, Population Studies Centre, London, Ontario N6A 5C2, Canada.
Author's E-mail: SulaimanB@StatsSA.ppwv.gov.za. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40288 Behrman, Jere R.; Sickles, Robin C.;
Taubman, Paul. Causes, correlates and consequences of
death among older adults: some methodological approaches and
substantive analyses. ISBN 0-7923-8286-2. LC 98-39379. 1998. xi,
186 pp. Kluwer Academic: Dordrecht, Netherlands. In Eng.
"Why
are there differences in life expectancies among various demographic
groups? Why have these changes in life expectancies occurred? Many
reasons are given in the popular and more scholarly literatures. [This
study]...considers an integrated approach to investigating determinants
of and correlates of mortality in the United States--integrating
modeling, micro data, and modern econometric techniques. A number of
examples of applications are included, with some explorations of the
robustness of the results under alternative assumptions. The basic
purpose of this text is to increase our knowledge of mortality and to
illustrate how such an integrated approach can further our knowledge of
mortality and related phenomena."
Correspondence:
Kluwer Academic Publishers, P.O. Box 989, 3300 AZ Dordrecht,
Netherlands. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40289 Breeze, Elizabeth; Sloggett, Andy;
Fletcher, Astrid. Socioeconomic and demographic predictors
of mortality and institutional residence among middle aged and older
people: results from the Longitudinal Study. Journal of
Epidemiology and Community Health, Vol. 53, No. 12, Dec 1999. 765-74
pp. London, England. In Eng.
Using data from the Longitudinal
Study, the authors analyze socioeconomic and demographic predictors of
mortality and institutional residence in old age by sex in the United
Kingdom over the period 1971-1991. Secure living arrangements and
access to a car are factors affecting institutional residence and
mortality. "These results demonstrate persistence of inequalities
in health related outcomes throughout old age, both in those with
unfavourable circumstances in mid-life and in those who, in later life,
have lost earlier advantages."
Correspondence: E.
Breeze, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Department of
Epidemiology and Population Health, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT,
England. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40290 Gray, Rossarin S.; Gray,
Alan. Social aspects of mortality in young and middle
adulthood in Thailand. Journal of Population and Social Studies,
Vol. 8, No. 1, Jul 1999. 65-83, 165-6 pp. Nakhon Pathom, Thailand. In
Eng. with sum. in Tha.
"In this paper, we examine the
characteristics of adults who died at the ages of young to middle
adulthood (15-64 years), in the twelve-month period of follow-up of the
Survey of Population Change [in Thailand] 1995-96.... The objective is
to detect differences that may be associated with social
roles."
Correspondence: R. S. Gray, National
Statistical Office, Social Statistics Division, Larn Luang Road,
Bangkok 10100, Thailand. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40291 Hurd, Michael D.
Predictors of mortality among the elderly. NBER Working Paper,
No. 7440, Dec 1999. 26, [1] pp. National Bureau of Economic Research
[NBER]: Cambridge, Massachusetts. In Eng.
"The objective of
this paper is to find the quantitative importance of some predictors of
mortality among the population aged 70 or over [in the United States].
The predictors are socio-economic indicators (income, wealth and
education), thirteen health indicators including a history of heart
attack or cancer, and subjective probabilities of survival. The
estimation is based on mortality between waves 1 and 2 of the Asset and
Health Dynamics among the Oldest-Old study. We find that the
relationship between socio-economic indicators and mortality declines
with age, that the 13 health indicators are strong predictors of
mortality and that the subjective survival probabilities predict
mortality even after controlling for socio-economic indicators and the
health conditions."
Correspondence: National Bureau of
Economic Research, 1050 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Author's E-mail: mhurd@rand.org. Location: Princeton
University Library (PF).
65:40292 Meller, Ingeborg; Fichter, Manfred
M.; Schröppel, Hildegard. Mortality risk in the octo-
and nonagenarians: longitudinal results of an epidemiological follow-up
community study. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical
Neurosciences, Vol. 249, No. 4, Aug 1999. 180-9 pp. Berlin, Germany. In
Eng.
"The object of the study was the assessment of the
mortality risk for persons in a representative two-wave community
sample assessed longitudinally. In the first cross-section a total of
358 (89.1%) subjects of Munich, Germany, aged 85 years and above were
interviewed by research physicians. One year later 263 (73.5%) persons
were reexamined. Death certificate diagnoses were obtained after an
interval of 4 years 8 months. 58% of the total sample were deceased.
Sociodemographic factors, mental disorders, subjective health status
and need for care were analysed in relation to mortality by Cox
regression. The probability of death was increased in those diagnosed
as having a dementia or depressive disorder, in those of increasing
age, living in institutions, being in need of care and of bad health
status.... Need for care was the most powerful predictor of
mortality."
Correspondence: I. Meller, University of
Munich, Department of Psychiatry, Nußbaumstraße 7, 80336
Munich, Germany. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40293 Østbye, Truls; Steenhuis,
Runa; Wolfson, Christina; Walton, Ruth; Hill, Gerry.
Predictors of five-year mortality in older Canadians: the Canadian
Study of Health and Aging. Journal of the American Geriatrics
Society, Vol. 47, No. 10, 1999. 1,249-54 pp. Baltimore, Maryland. In
Eng.
The factors affecting five-year mortality among older
Canadians are analyzed using data from the 1991 Canadian Study of
Health and Aging. The data concern 8,949 individuals living in the
community and 2,914 individuals who underwent an extensive clinical
examination. "Multivariate models showed that the odds of death
within 5 years increased with age. This effect remained after
adjustment for all other variables. Odds of death increased with
institutionalization and with increasing cognitive and physical
impairment. Although vision and hearing problems and the presence of
heart disease, stroke, and diabetes were all strongly related to 5-year
mortality in univariate, unadjusted analyses, their contributions were
minimal in the multivariate analyses. Increased Body Mass Index was
associated with lower mortality in both univariate and multivariate
analyses."
Correspondence: T. Østbye, Duke
University Medical Center, Department of Community and Family Medicine,
Durham, NC 27710. E-mail: ostby001@mc.duke.edu. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40294 Parnell, Allan M.; Owens, Cynthia
R. Evaluation of U.S. mortality patterns at old ages using
the Medicare enrollment data base. Demographic Research, Vol. 1,
1999. Rostock, Germany. In Eng.
"We evaluate the consistency
of age-specific mortality patterns for older Americans using the Health
Care Financing Administration's (HCFA's) Medicare Enrollment Data Base
(EDB), a data set that includes over 30 million records. To do this, we
compare the mortality curves across regions within race and sex groups,
and we compare national mortality curves of white men and women
relative to African American and Puerto Rican men and women.... Both
the period and cohort age at death data for whites in the Medicare EDB
appear to be very consistent, at least up to age 95, perhaps higher for
women. Above age 100 the patterns become extremely inconsistent.
However, questions remain about the age-specific mortality patterns of
African Americans, especially the rates for
men."
Correspondence: A. M. Parnell, McMillan and Moss
Research, Mebane, North Carolina.
65:40295 Wittwer-Backofen, Ursula.
Disparities in the mortality of the aged: comparing regions.
Biological versus socioeconomic determinants: a regional study of
Hesse. [Disparitäten der Alterssterblichkeit im regionalen
Vergleich. Biologische versus sozioökonomische Determinanten:
regionale Studie für den Raum Hessen.] Materialien zur
Bevölkerungswissenschaft, Vol. 95, 1999. v, 285 pp. Bundesinstitut
für Bevölkerungsforschung: Wiesbaden, Germany. In Ger.
This study examines the determinants of mortality differences at
ages over 60. The author first summarizes the connections between life
expectancy and a range of factors including genetics, gender,
environment, and social factors. She then describes her study of
mortality differentials in the German state of Hesse, including
life-table and cause-of-death analyses. The focus is on the
socioeconomic and environmental determinants of mortality and life
expectancy. Data are from official sources for the period
1987-1993.
Correspondence: Bundesinstitut für
Bevölkerungsforschung, Friedrich-Ebert-Allee 4, Postfach 5528,
65180 Wiesbaden, Germany. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
Studies that present actual life table data and all studies concerned primarily with life tables, including the appropriate methodological studies. Life table studies that are concerned with topics other than mortality are classified under the appropriate heading and cross-referenced to this heading.
65:40296 Anderson, Robert N.
United States life tables, 1997. NCHS National Vital
Statistics Reports, Vol. 47, No. 28, Dec 13, 1999. 37 pp. U.S. National
Center for Health Statistics [NCHS]: Hyattsville, Maryland. In Eng.
"The life tables in this report are current life tables for
the United States based on age-specific death rates in 1997. Beginning
with 1997 mortality data, complete U.S. life tables were constructed
using a new methodology that replaces the abridged life table
methodology used previously. The methodology is similar to that used in
the decennial life tables. Also, life expectancy and other life table
values are shown for ages 85 to 100 years for the first time as part of
the annual U.S. life tables. Data used to prepare these life tables are
1997 final mortality statistics; July 1, 1997, population estimates;
and data from the Medicare program. Presented are complete life tables
by age, race, and sex."
Correspondence: U.S. National
Center for Health Statistics, 6525 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, MD
20782-2003. E-mail: nchsquery@cdc.gov. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40297 Bell, Felicitie C.; Wade, Alice
H. Actuarial tables based on the U.S. life tables:
1989-91. Actuarial Study, No. 113, Pub. Order No. 11-11543. Mar
1998. iv, 147 pp. U.S. Social Security Administration: Baltimore,
Maryland. In Eng.
Actuarial tables for the United States by sex and
race are presented based on the official life tables for 1989-1991.
"The actuarial functions in this study can be used to calculate
present values of expected future payments contingent upon the death or
survival of a designated individual. A series of periodic payments to
continue during the life of an individual is called a life annuity. A
payment to be made on the death of an individual is called a life
insurance. As with the 1989-91 decennial life tables, the actuarial
functions included...here were calculated by sex and for both sexes
combined for the total population, the white population, the population
other than white and the black population. For each race/sex
combination described, actuarial functions were tabulated using
interest rates of 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%, 11%, and
12%."
Correspondence: U.S. Social Security
Administration, Office of the Chief Actuary, Room 700, Altmeyer
Building, Baltimore, MD 21235. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40298 Del Panta, Lorenzo.
Constructing abbreviated provincial life tables for 1881-1882.
[Costruzione di tavole di mortalità provinciali abbreviate
1881-82.] Bollettino di Demografia Storica, No. 29, 1998. 61-9 pp.
Bologna, Italy. In Ita.
The author presents some of the
methodological issues involved in constructing abbreviated life tables
for each of the Italian provinces for the years immediately prior to
Italy's unification, and for the Kingdom of Italy after unification.
Data are from the 1881 Italian census and age-specific mortality
statistics for the years 1881-1882.
Correspondence: L. Del
Panta, Università degli Studi di Bologna, Dipartimento di
Scienze Statistiche, Via Belle Arti 41, 40126 Bologna, Italy. E-mail:
delpanta@stat.unibo.it. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40299 Ishikawa, Akira. Life
tables by marital status: 1995. Jinko Mondai Kenkyu/Journal of
Population Problems, Vol. 55, No. 1, 1999. 35-60 pp. Tokyo, Japan. In
Jpn.
Life tables for Japan for 1995 are presented by age and
sex.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40300 Kannisto, Väinö; Turpeinen,
Oiva; Nieminen, Mauri. Finnish life tables since
1751. Demographic Research, Vol. 1, 1999. Rostock, Germany. In
Eng.
"A recently completed series of life tables from 1751 to
1995 is used for identifying four stages of mortality transition in
Finland, separated by the years 1880, 1945 and 1970. The cyclical
fluctuation of the death rate in the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries is measured and examined in relation to epidemics, famines
and wars. Important permanent changes in mortality also took place in
this early period. Each of the successive stages of transition produced
its own characteristic pattern of mortality change which contrasted
with those of the other stages. Finally, the age profile of the years
added to life is drawn to illustrate the end result of each stage of
mortality transition."
Correspondence: V. Kannisto,
Campo Grande 1 6-D, 1700-086 Lisbon, Portugal.
65:40301 Lischke, Ralph-Jürgen.
Caspar Neumann (1648-1715): a contribution to the history of life
tables. [Caspar Neumann (1648-1715): ein Beitrag zur Geschichte
der Sterbetafeln.] Edition IFAD, No. III, Nov 1998. 17 pp. Institut
für Angewandte Demographie: Berlin, Germany. In Ger.
The
author gives an overview of the history of the concept of life tables
and then describes the role of Caspar Neumann as a significant
influence on Halley and Leibniz and a forerunner of Johann Peter
Süßmilch, the founder of statistical population studies in
Germany.
Correspondence: Institut für Angewandte
Demographie, Sophienstraße 3, 10178 Berlin, Germany. E-mail:
ifad@ifad.b.shuttle.de. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40302 Panama. Dirección de
Estadística y Censo (Panama City, Panama).
Abbreviated life tables for Panama, by province and sex: 1990-1995
to 2005-2010. [Tablas abreviadas de vida de la República,
por provincia, según sexo: quinquenio 1990-95 al 2005-10.]
Estadística Panameña, Boletín Especial, No. 4, May
1996. 51 pp. Panama City, Panama. In Spa.
Abbreviated life tables
are presented for Panama by sex and province for the five-year periods
1990-1995 to 2005-2010.
Correspondence: Dirección de
Estadística y Censo, Contraloría General de la
República, Apartado 5213, Panama City 5, Panama. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40303 United States. National Center for
Health Statistics [NCHS] (Hyattsville, Maryland). U.S.
decennial life tables for 1989-91. Volume 1, Number 4, United States
life tables eliminating certain causes of death. Pub. Order No.
DHHS (PHS) 99-1150-4. LC 85-600190. Sep 1999. v, 184 pp. Hyattsville,
Maryland. In Eng.
"This report, the fourth in a set of reports
containing life table data for the United States and each State for the
period 1989-91, shows abridged cause-elimination life tables for 51
selected causes of death for the total United States. These life tables
address the hypothetical mortality experience of a cohort assuming that
a particular cause of death is eliminated. Four sets of detailed tables
showing multiple-decrement and cause-elimination life table functions
for each cause of death are presented. Each of the four sets contains
seven tables, one each for total population, total males, total
females, white males, white females, black males, and black females.
The report also includes a description of the methodology used to
construct the cause-elimination life
tables."
Correspondence: U.S. National Center for
Health Statistics, Data Dissemination Branch, 6525 Belcrest Road, Room
1064, Hyattsville, MD 20782-2003. E-mail: nchsquery@cdc.gov.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
Studies on the ratio of mortality in different subgroups of a population, classified according to certain criteria, such as sex, social class, occupation, and marital status. Also includes studies on excess mortality and comparative mortality.
65:40304 Abraído-Lanza, Ana F.;
Dohrenwend, Bruce P.; Ng-Mak, Daisy S.; Turner, J. Blake.
The Latino mortality paradox: a test of the "salmon bias"
and healthy migrant hypotheses. American Journal of Public Health,
Vol. 89, No. 10, Oct 1999. 1,543-8 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
The
author explore possible explanations for the fact that, although
Latinos in the United States have a worse socioeconomic profile than
non-Latino whites, they also have a lower mortality rate. The two
explanations considered are the salmon bias hypothesis, which
postulates that Latino migrants may return to their country of origin
and so become statistically immortal, and an alternative hypothesis
that suggests that the migration process favors the selection of
healthier migrants. Data are from the NLMS Public Use File and concern
301,718 non-Latino whites and 17,375 Latinos. The authors conclude that
neither hypothesis explains the lower mortality of
Latinos.
Correspondence: A. F. Abraído-Lanza,
Columbia University, Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health, 60
Haven Avenue B-3, New York, NY 10032. E-mail: AFL7@columbia.edu.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40305 Allison, David B.; Fontaine, Kevin
R.; Manson, JoAnn E.; Stevens, June; VanItallie, Theodore B.
Annual deaths attributable to obesity in the United States.
JAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 282, No. 16,
Oct 27, 1999. 1,530-8 pp. Chicago, Illinois. In Eng.
An attempt is
made to estimate the number of obesity-related deaths in the United
States. "Data from 5 prospective cohort studies (the Alameda
Community Health Study, the Framingham Heart Study, the Tecumseh
Community Health Study, the American Cancer Society Cancer Prevention
Study I, and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey I
Epidemiologic Follow-up Study) and 1 published study (the Nurses'
Health Study) in conjunction with 1991 national statistics on body mass
index distributions, population size, and overall deaths.... The
estimated number of annual deaths attributable to obesity among U.S.
adults is approximately 280,000 based on HRs [hazard ratios] from all
subjects and 325,000 based on HRs from only nonsmokers and
never-smokers."
Correspondence: D. B. Allison, St.
Luke's/Roosevelt Hospital, Obesity Research Center, 1090 Amsterdam
Avenue, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10025. E-mail: dba8@columbia.edu.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40306 Baird, Janis; Osmond, Clive; Bowes,
Ian; Phillips, David I. W. Mortality from birth to adult
life: a longitudinal study of twins. Early Human Development, Vol.
53, No. 1, Nov 1998. 73-9 pp. Limerick, Ireland. In Eng.
"We
have examined mortality from birth through adult life in a cohort of
2,562 twins born in Birmingham, [England], between 1950 and 1954. Their
birthweights and obstetric details had been recorded as part of a
longitudinal study of births in Birmingham. There were a total of 151
perinatal deaths...and 227 infant deaths.... 70 deaths occurred after
the age of one year. In comparison with national mortality rates in the
UK, overall mortality in the twins was high.... Mortality was highest
in the first year of life and, although it then declined progressively,
it remained significantly higher than that of the general population
until age 5 years.... These studies not only underline the excess
mortality associated with twin birth but show for the first time that
this excess mortality extends into
childhood."
Correspondence: D. I. W. Phillips,
Southampton General Hospital, MRC Environmental Epidemiology Unit,
Tremona Road, Southampton SO16 6YD, England. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40307 Benetos, Athanase; Rudnichi, Annie;
Thomas, Frédérique; Safar, Michel; Guize, Louis.
Influence of heart rate on mortality in a French population: role
of age, gender, and blood pressure. Hypertension, Vol. 33, No. 1,
Jan 1999. 44-52 pp. Baltimore, Maryland. In Eng.
"The aim of
the present study was to assess the effects of high heart rate [HR] on
mortality in different subgroups in a French population according to
age, gender, and blood pressure levels. We studied 19,386 subjects
(12,123 men, 7,263 women), aged 40 to 69 years, who had a routine
health examination at the Centre d'Investigations Préventives et
Cliniques (IPC) between 1974 and 1977.... The association of HR with
cardiovascular mortality in men was (1) related to a strong association
with coronary but not cerebrovascular mortality, (2) independent of age
and hypertension, and (3) influenced by the level of pulse pressure; in
patients with high pulse pressure, accelerated HR was not associated
with increased cardiovascular mortality. In conclusion, in a large
French population, accelerated resting HR represents an independent
predictor of noncardiovascular mortality in both genders, and of
cardiovascular mortality in men, independent of age and the presence of
hypertension."
Correspondence: A. Benetos,
Investigations Préventives et Cliniques, 23 Rue de Lubeck, 75116
Paris, France. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40308 Bosman, Hans; Schrijvers, Carola;
Mackenbach, Johan P. Socioeconomic inequalities in
mortality and importance of perceived control: cohort study.
British Medical Journal, Vol. 319, No. 7223, Dec 4, 1999. 1,469-70 pp.
London, England. In Eng.
This study examines the contribution of
perceived control to socioeconomic differences in mortality. The data
were collected in the Dutch town of Eindhoven in 1991 as part of the
GLOBE study on health and living conditions. The results indicate that
"low socioeconomic status is related to mortality partly because
people with a low socioeconomic status more often perceive low control.
This supports hypotheses on the importance of perceived control for
socioeconomic inequalities in health. Perceptions of low control partly
originate in adverse socioeconomic conditions during
childhood."
Correspondence: H. Bosman, Erasmus
University, Medical School, Department of Public Health, P.O. Box 1738,
3000 DR Rotterdam, Netherlands. E-mail: h.bosma@np.unimaas.nl.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40309 Burgoa, Mar; Regidor, Enrique;
Rodriguez, Carmen; Gutierrez-Fisac, Juan L. Mortality by
cause of death and marital status in Spain. European Journal of
Public Health, Vol. 8, No. 1, Mar 1998. 37-42 pp. Oxford, England. In
Eng.
"The purpose of this study is to show the differences in
mortality from the leading causes of death by marital status among men
and women in Spain. An analysis was made of persons aged 25 years and
older who died in Spain during 1991. The mortality differences by
marital status and sex were analysed for all the deaths and for the
most frequent causes of death, using the ratios of age-adjusted death
rates calculated from Poisson log-linear models. For both men and
women, mortality was always higher in single and widowed persons than
in married persons, except for a non-statistically significant
mortality from diabetes mellitus and cirrhosis of the liver in single
women. Divorced and separated men had a higher mortality than married
men for all the causes of death taken together; the mortality among
divorced and separated women, on the other hand, was lower than married
women. Divorced and separated men and women generally had a lower
mortality than married persons for the different causes of death,
except for traffic accidents, suicide, cirrhosis of the liver and HIV
infection, where it was higher."
Correspondence: E.
Regidor, Ministry of Health, Department of Epidemiology, Paseo del
Prado 18-20, 28071 Madrid, Spain. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40310 Calle, Eugenia E.; Thun, Michael J.;
Petrelli, Jennifer M.; Rodriguez, Carmen; Heath, Clark W.
Body-mass index and mortality in a prospective cohort of U.S.
adults. New England Journal of Medicine, Vol. 341, No. 15, Oct 7,
1999. 1,097-105 pp. Boston, Massachusetts. In Eng.
"Body-mass
index...is known to be associated with overall mortality. [The authors]
investigated the effects of age, race, sex, smoking status, and history
of disease on the relation between body-mass index and mortality.... In
a prospective study of more than 1 million adults in the United States
(457,785 men and 588,369 women), 201,622 deaths occurred during 14
years of follow-up. [They] examined the relation between body-mass
index and the risk of death from all causes in four subgroups
categorized according to smoking status and history of disease.... The
risk of death from all causes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, or other
diseases increases throughout the range of moderate and severe
overweight for both men and women in all age groups." The data are
from the Cancer Prevention Study II that began in
1982.
Correspondence: E. E. Calle, American Cancer Society,
1599 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30329. Location: Princeton
University Library (SZ).
65:40311 Camarero Rioja, Luis A.; Gómez
Redondo, Rosa; Jiménez Aboitiz, Ricardo. Dying in
the city or in the country: an analysis of urban-rural mortality
differentials. [Morir en la ciudad y en el campo: análisis
de las diferencias urbano-rurales en mortalidad.] Sociología,
No. 23, May-Aug 1999. 97-129 pp. Valladolid, Spain. In Spa. with sum.
in Eng.
An analysis of differences in the causes of death in Spain
between rural and urban areas by age and sex is presented, based on all
deaths registered over the period 1990-1992. Although the results
indicate that there is still a small difference in life expectancy
between rural and urban areas, with the advantage being with rural
areas, the general trend is toward a diminution of those differences
and toward a convergence in the lifestyles of rural and urban
residents.
Correspondence: L. A. Camarero Rioja,
Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Ciudad
Universitaria s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain. Location: Princeton
University Library (PR).
65:40312 Caselli, Graziella; Reale,
Alessandra. Does cohort analysis contribute to the study
of the geography of mortality? Genus, Vol. 55, No. 1-2, Jan-Jun
1999. 27-59 pp. Rome, Italy. In Eng. with sum. in Ita; Fre.
"This paper aims to analyse territorial differences in
mortality in Italy by longitudinal analysis. Attention is focused, for
males and females, on adult mortality. Mortality trends and levels for
all the cohorts have been very different by region and age. Analogies
and differences between the `stories of mortality' could be interpreted
as consequences of analogies and differences in the `life stories'
according to the region of residence. Therefore, for example, the
convergence of mortality levels in the Veneto and Lombardy and in the
South and North could be better interpreted in light of the increasing
similarity between the life histories of the different
cohorts."
Correspondence: G. Caselli,
Università degli Studi di Roma La Sapienza, Dipartimento di
Scienze Demografiche, Via Nomentana 41, 00161 Rome, Italy. E-mail:
caselli@dsd.sta.uniroma1.it. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40313 Chiang, Tung-liang.
Economic transition and changing relation between income inequality
and mortality in Taiwan: regression analysis. British Medical
Journal, Vol. 319, No. 7218, Oct 30, 1999. 1,162-5 pp. London, England.
In Eng.
The changing relationship between income inequality and
mortality in Taiwan as the island passed through different stages of
economic development between 1976 and 1995 is explored using regression
analysis. "When median household disposable income was controlled
for, the association between income inequality and mortality became
stronger in 1995 than in 1976. Especially, the association between
income inequality and mortality in children aged under 5, with
adjustment for differences in median household disposable income,
changed from non-significant in 1976 to highly significant in 1995. In
1995, the level of household income after adjustment for income
distribution no longer had a bearing on mortality in children under
5."
Correspondence: T.-l. Chiang, National Taiwan
University, College of Public Health, Institute of Health Policy and
Management, Taipei 10018, Taiwan. E-mail: tlchiang@ha.mc.ntu.edu.tw.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40314 Collins, Chiquita A.; Williams, David
R. Segregation and mortality: The deadly effects of
racism? Sociological Forum, Vol. 14, No. 3, Sep 1999. 495-523 pp.
New York, New York. In Eng.
"Using national mortality and
census data for 1990 and a measure of black social isolation from
whites, we examine the association between residential segregation and
mortality in 107 major U.S. cities. Our analyses revealed that black
social isolation tended to predict higher rates of mortality for
African American males and females, although the strength of the
association varied by cause of death. Socioeconomic deprivation
explained a modest part of this association for black males but not for
black females. Our analyses also found that a positive association
between social isolation and mortality was more pronounced, for both
blacks and whites, in cities that were also high on the index of
dissimilarity."
This is a revised version of a paper originally
presented at the 1999 Annual Meeting of the Population Association of
America.
Correspondence: C. A. Collins, Georgia Institute
of Technology, School of History, Technology and Society, Smith
Building 116, 685 Cherry Street, Atlanta, GA 30332-0345. E-mail:
chiquita.collins@hts.gatech.edu. Location: Princeton
University Library (PR).
65:40315 Deaton, Angus; Paxson,
Christina. Mortality, education, income, and inequality
among American cohorts. NBER Working Paper, No. 7140, May 1999. 49
pp. National Bureau of Economic Research [NBER]: Cambridge,
Massachusetts. In Eng.
"People [in the United States] whose
family income was less than $5,000 in 1980 could expect to live about
25 percent fewer years than people whose family income was greater than
$50,000. We explore this finding using both individual data and a panel
of aggregate birth cohorts observed from 1975 to 1995.... We derive
results on how this relationship [between income and mortality] changes
at different levels of aggregation. Our results on individuals show
that income reduces the risk of death, and does so even controlling for
education.... The panel of cohorts also shows a strongly protective
effect of income, but there is evidence that cyclical increases in
income may raise mortality, even when the long-run effects of income
are in the opposite direction. There is no evidence that recent
increases in inequality raised mortality beyond what it would otherwise
have been."
Correspondence: National Bureau of
Economic Research, 1050 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Author's E-mail: deaton@wws.princeton.edu. Location: Princeton
University Library (PF).
65:40316 Dinkel, Reiner H.; Luy,
Marc. Nature or behavior? An article explaining the
phenomenon of male excess mortality through a comparison between a
monastic and non-monastic (general public) population. [Natur oder
Verhalten? Ein Beitrag zur Erklärung der männlichen
Übersterblichkeit durch einen Vergleich von Kloster- und
Allgemeinbevölkerung.] Zeitschrift für
Bevölkerungswissenschaft, Vol. 24, No. 2, 1999. 105-32 pp.
Wiesbaden, Germany. In Ger. with sum. in Eng; Fre.
"Employing
a study of 8,400 Bavarian nuns and monks the overall mortality and
especially the sex differences in mortality for the monastery and the
general population are calculated.... Life tables for the time periods
1910-1940 and 1955-1985...were constructed.... [The] difference between
the monastery and the general population solely results from the
lacking improvements of mortality for German males whose mortality
improvements...fall short of Bavarian nuns, monks and German
women."
Correspondence: R. H. Dinkel, Universität
Rostock, Lehrstuhl für Demographie, Parkstraße 6, 18051
Rostock, Germany. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40317 Dolk, H.; Thakrar, B.; Walls, P.;
Landon, M.; Grundy, C.; Sáez Lloret, I.; Wilkinson, P.; Elliott,
P. Mortality among residents near cokeworks in Great
Britain. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Vol. 56, No. 1,
Jan 1999. 34-40 pp. London, England. In Eng.
The extent to which
people living near cokeworks in the United Kingdom have higher levels
of mortality than those living at greater distances is explored. The
focus is on cardiovascular and respiratory causes of death that may be
associated with pollution. The time period is 1981-1992. "A small
excess mortality near cokeworks as found in this study is plausible in
the light of current evidence about the health impact of air pollution.
However, in this study the effects of pollution from cokeworks, if any,
are outweighed by the effects of deprivation on mortality near
cokeworks. It is not possible to confidently exclude socioeconomic
confounding or biases resulting from inexact population estimation as
explanations for the excess found."
Correspondence: H.
Dolk, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Department of
Public Health Policy, Environmental Epidemiology Unit, Keppel Street,
London WC1E 7HT, England. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40318 Dorn, Joan P.; Cerny, Frank J.;
Epstein, Leonard H.; Naughton, John; Vena, John E.; Winkelstein,
Warren; Schisterman, Enrique; Trevisan, Maurizio. Work and
leisure time physical activity and mortality in men and women from a
general population sample. Annals of Epidemiology, Vol. 9, No. 6,
Aug 1999. 366-73 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
The long-term
relationship between total physical activity and mortality is examined
using data for a randomly selected sample of 698 white males and 763
females in Buffalo, New York, who were followed up over a 29-year
period. The results indicated that "physical activity favorably
influences mortality risks in non-obese men and younger
women."
Correspondence: J. P. Dorn, State University
of New York, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, 270 Farber
Hall, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14214-3000. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40319 Hemström, Örjan.
Male susceptibility and female emancipation: studies on the gender
difference in mortality. Acta Universitatis Stockhomiensis.
Stockholm Studies in Sociology. N.S., ISBN 91-22-01817-4. LC 99-158960.
1998. 177 pp. Almqvist and Wiksell International: Stockholm, Sweden. In
Eng.
"The aim of this thesis is to examine the social
determinants of gender mortality differences--generally a higher
mortality for men than for women.... The data materials used here are
time-series data from official statistics in Sweden, 1945-1992, and
individual data from the Swedish Census-linked Deaths Registries....The
results show that economic growth has been more beneficial to female
than male survival in Sweden. This is due in particular to the link
between economic growth and male behaviour, since it was found that
changes in alcohol and cigarette consumption were the two most
important factors contributing to changes in excess male mortality
after 1945. Changes in women's social status, as indicated by changes
in the male:female wage ratio, may also have contributed--in particular
to women's mortality decline."
Correspondence:
Almqvist and Wiksell International, P.O. Box 7634, 103 94
Stockholm, Sweden. Location: U.S. Library of Congress,
Washington, D.C.
65:40320 Kesteloot, H. Nutrition,
all-cause and cardiovascular mortality: its possible modulation by
other factors, especially physical exercise. In: Health and
mortality: issues of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on
Health and Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J.
Chamie and R. L. Cliquet. 1999. 357-73 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
Differences in
mortality levels around the world are analyzed by age and sex. The
focus is on all-cause mortality and total cardiovascular mortality and
the factors that affect them, including the level of medical care,
genetic factors, pollution, stress, obesity, food additives,
socioeconomic factors, and smoking. The author concludes that nutrition
is the most important determinant of mortality at the population level,
and that recommendations to the public concerning nutrition and other
life-style factors can be easily understandable and non-dogmatic, with
the exception of the firm recommendation against
smoking.
Correspondence: H. Kesteloot, University of
Leuven, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health,
Capucijnenvoer 33, 3000 Louvain, Belgium. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40321 Mackenbach, Johan P.; Kunst, Anton
E.; Groenhof, Feikje; Borgan, Jens-Kristian; Costa, Giuseppe; Faggiano,
Fabrizio; Józan, Peter; Leinsalu, Mall; Martikainen, Pekka;
Rychtarikova, Jitka; Valkonen, Tapani. Socioeconomic
inequalities in mortality among women and among men: an international
study. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No. 12, Dec
1999. 1,800-6 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
"This study
compared differences in total and cause-specific mortality by
educational level among women with those among men in 7 countries: the
United States, Finland, Norway, Italy, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and
Estonia." Data are for the period 1980-1990 and are from official
sources. "Total mortality rate ratios among women ranged from 1.09
in the Czech Republic to 1.31 in the United States and Estonia. Higher
mortality rates among lower-educated women were found for most causes
of death, but not for neoplasms. Relative inequalities in total
mortality tended to be smaller among women than among men. In the
United States and Western Europe, but not in Central and Eastern
Europe, this sex difference was largely due to differences between
women and men in cause-of-death pattern. For specific causes of death,
inequalities are usually larger among men."
Correspondence:
J. P. Mackenbach, Erasmus University, Department of Public Health,
P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, Netherlands. E-mail:
mackenbach@mgz.fgg.eur.nl. Location: Princeton University
Library (SZ).
65:40322 Manor, Orly; Eisenbach, Zvi; Peritz,
Eric; Friedlander, Yechiel. Mortality differentials among
Israeli men. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No. 12,
Dec 1999. 1,807-13 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
Mortality
differentials among Israeli men are analyzed with respect to ethnic
origin, marital status, and various measures of social status. The data
were based on linkages between a 20% sample from the 1983 census and
death records up to the end of 1992 and included 75,527 men, 17,348 of
whom subsequently died. The results indicate that "some sectors of
Israeli society have higher risks of death than others, including,
among the male population, those who are poor, less educated,
unmarried, unskilled, out of the labor force, and of North African
origin."
Correspondence: O. Manor, Hebrew
University-Hadassah Medical Organization, School of Public Health and
Community Medicine, Ein Karem, Jerusalem, Israel. E-mail:
om@cc.huji.ac.il. Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40323 Martikainen, Pekka; Valkonen,
Tapani. Bias related to the exclusion of the economically
inactive in studies on social class differences in mortality.
International Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 5, Oct 1999.
899-904 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
Official Finnish data for the
period 1970-1990 are used to assess the extent to which the exclusion
of the economically inactive affects the estimation of differences in
mortality by social class. The authors conclude that "exclusion of
the economically inactive population underestimates the class
differences in the total population by about 25% among men and 60%
among women. The bias does not disappear if the first 5 years of
follow-up are excluded and the bias can lead to erroneous conclusions
about the trends in social class differences in
mortality."
Correspondence: P. Martikainen, University
of Helsinki, Department of Sociology, Population Research Unit, P.O.
Box 33, 00014 Helsinki, Finland. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40324 McDonough, Peggy; Williams, David R.;
House, James S.; Duncan, Greg J. Gender and the
socioeconomic gradient in mortality. Journal of Health and Social
Behavior, Vol. 40, No. 1, Mar 1999. 17-31 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
Gender differences in patterns of socioeconomic mortality
differentials in the United States are analyzed using data from the
Panel Study of Income Dynamics for the period 1972-1991. "We find
no gender differences in the effect of respondents' own socioeconomic
positions on their mortality risk. However, increasing spousal income
raises men's odds of dying, while the opposite is true for women. Our
results raise questions about the prevailing view that the
socioeconomic gradient in mortality is weaker among women. Moreover,
gender differences in the effects of spousal earnings on mortality risk
suggest that their labor market rewards have fundamentally different
meanings for women and men."
Correspondence: P.
McDonough, York University, Faculty of Arts, Department of Sociology,
4700 Keele Street, North York, Ontario M3J 1P3, Canada. E-mail:
peggymcd@yorku.ca. Location: Princeton University Library
(SW).
65:40325 Michelozzi, Paola; Perucci, Carlo A.;
Forastiere, Francesco; Fusco, Danilo; Ancona, Carla; Dell'Orco,
Valerio. Inequality in health: socioeconomic differentials
in mortality in Rome, 1990-95. Journal of Epidemiology and
Community Health, Vol. 53, No. 11, Nov 1999. 687-93 pp. London,
England. In Eng.
"The aim of this study was to investigate the
relation between SES [socioeconomic status] and mortality in the
metropolitan area of Rome [Italy] during the six year period 1990-1995,
and to examine variations in mortality differentials between 1990-92
and 1993-95.... Among men, total mortality and mortality for the major
causes of death showed an inverse association with SES.... Comparing
the periods 1990-92 and 1993-95, differences in total mortality between
socioeconomic groups widened in both sexes.... Despite the possible
[study] limitations, these results suggest that social class
differences in mortality in Rome are
increasing."
Correspondence: P. Michelozzi, Lazio
Region Health Authority, Department of Epidemiology, Via di Santa
Costanza 53, 00198 Rome, Italy. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40326 Mungiole, Michael; Pickle, Linda W.;
Simonson, Katherine H. Application of a weighted
head-banging algorithm to mortality data maps. Statistics in
Medicine, Vol. 18, No. 23, Dec 15, 1999. 3,201-9 pp. Chichester,
England. In Eng.
"Smoothed data maps permit the reader to
identify general spatial trends by removing the background noise of
random variability often present in raw data. To smooth mortality data
from 798 small areas comprising the contiguous United States, we
extended the head-banging algorithm to allow for differential weighting
of the values to be smoothed. Actual and simulated data sets were used
to determine how head-banging smoothed spike and edge features in the
data, and to observe the degree to which weighting affected the
results. As expected, spikes were generally removed while edges and
clusters of high rates near the U.S. borders were maintained by the
unweighted head-banging algorithm. Incorporating weights inversely
proportional to standard errors had a substantial effect on smoothed
data, for example determining whether observed spikes were retained or
removed. The process used to obtain the smoothed data, including the
choice of head-banging parameters, is
discussed."
Correspondence: M. Mungiole, Army Research
Laboratory, 2800 Powder Mill Road, Adelphi, MD 20783-1197. E-mail:
mmungiole@mail.arl.mil. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40327 Nelissen, Jan H. M.
Mortality differences related to socioeconomic status and the
progressivity of old-age pensions and health insurance: the
Netherlands. European Journal of Population/Revue
Européenne de Démographie, Vol. 15, No. 1, Mar 1999.
77-97 pp. Dordrecht, Netherlands. In Eng. with sum. in Fre.
"In this paper, we use a dynamic microsimulation model which
has been applied to data for the Netherlands. We will look at the
effect of the inclusion of differential mortality on the progressivity
of the social security system in the Netherlands. We specifically
concentrate on the old-age pension system and health insurance."
The authors note that "for the Netherlands, [differences in
mortality rates between socioeconomic groups] result in a difference in
life expectancy between persons with a lower education and persons with
a higher education of about 4.5 years."
Correspondence:
J. H. M. Nelissen, Tilburg University, CentER, P.O. Box 90153,
5000 LE Tilburg, Netherlands. E-mail: j.h.m.nelissen@kub.nl.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40328 Ng-Mak, Daisy S.; Dohrenwend, Bruce
P.; Abraido-Lanza, Ana F.; Turner, J. Blake. A further
analysis of race differences in the National Longitudinal Mortality
Study. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No. 11, Nov
1999. 1,748-51 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
The relationship
between race and specific causes of death in adults 25 years and older
in the United States is explored using data from the U.S. National
Longitudinal Mortality Study. The results indicate that "black
persons younger than 65 years were at higher risk than others for
all-cause and cardiovascular mortality; the strongest effects were
observed among persons aged 25 through 44
years."
Correspondence: D. S. Ng-Mak, Columbia
University, Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health, EPI PH Building
18-304, PET, 600 West 168th Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10032.
E-mail: dsn3@columbia.edu. Location: Princeton University
Library (SZ).
65:40329 Riphahn, Regina T. The
mortality crisis in East Germany and its reflection on the statistics
of causes of death. [Die Mortalitätskrise in Ostdeutschland
und ihre Reflektion in der Todesursachenstatistik.] Zeitschrift
für Bevölkerungswissenschaft, Vol. 24, No. 3, 1999. 329-63
pp. Wiesbaden, Germany. In Ger. with sum. in Eng; Fre.
"This
essay compiles the available evidence of the mortality crisis in East
Germany after 1989, and subsequently evaluates alternative approaches
to an explanation. In the second section, the development of mortality
in the new states [is] presented.... Section 3 summarizes the
explanatory approaches used...for the short-term mortality crises and
examines their plausibility for the East German case.... The
argumentation saying that at first stress led to an increase of
morbidity and then--consequently--to an increase of mortality, seems
convincing.... Based on time series of age-specific causes of death,
the conclusion can be drawn that after reunification deaths caused by
alcohol abuse increased in Easy Germany. Cardiovascular diseases,
however, are the main cause for the increased mortality, confirming the
hypothesis that it had been
stress-induced."
Correspondence: R. T. Riphahn,
Universität München, Institut für Volkswirtschaftslehre,
Ludwigstraße 28 RG, 80539 Munich, Germany. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40330 Robertson, Chris; Ecob,
Russell. Simultaneous modelling of time trends and
regional variation in mortality rates. International Journal of
Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 5, Oct 1999. 955-63 pp. Oxford, England. In
Eng.
An attempt is made to model the regional component of the
variance in mortality rates in the United Kingdom using census data for
the period 1931-1991. "For both sexes, but particularly for
females, a reduction in the rate of decrease in mortality was found
around 1960. In addition, particularly for females, cohorts born after
1930 appear to show reductions in mortality at an increased rate. It is
demonstrated that there is evidence that the between-region variation
in the rates has not remained constant and that it is much less now
than it was at the beginning of the data
series."
Correspondence: C. Robertson, European
Institute of Oncology, Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Via
Ripamonti 435, 20141 Milan, Italy. E-mail: crobert@ieo.it.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40331 Singh, Pramil N.; Lindsted, Kristian
D.; Fraser, Gary E. Body weight and mortality among adults
who never smoked. American Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 150, No.
11, Dec 1, 1999. 1,152-64 pp. Baltimore, Maryland. In Eng.
"In
a 12-year prospective study, the authors examined the relation between
body mass index (BMI) and mortality among the 20,346 middle-aged (25-54
years) and older (55-84 years) non-Hispanic white cohort members of the
Adventist Health Study (California, 1976-1988) who had never smoked
cigarettes and had no history of coronary heart disease, cancer, or
stroke. In analyses that accounted for putative indicators (weight
change relative to 17 years before baseline, death during early
follow-up) of pre-existing illness, the authors found a direct positive
relation between BMI and all-cause mortality among middle-aged
men...older men...middle-aged women...and older women who had undergone
postmenopausal hormone replacement.... Among older women who had not
undergone postmenopausal hormone replacement, the authors found a
J-shaped relation...in which BMI was associated with a twofold increase
in mortality risk...that was primarily due to cardiovascular and
respiratory disease. These findings not only identify adiposity as a
risk factor among adults, but also raise the possibility that very lean
older women can experience an increased mortality risk that may be due
to their lower levels of adipose tissue-derived
estrogen."
Correspondence: P. N. Singh, Loma Linda
University, Center for Health Research, Nichol Hall, Room #2008, Loma
Linda, CA 92350. Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40332 Stamler, Jeremiah; Stamler, Rose;
Neaton, James D.; Wentworth, Deborah; Daviglus, Martha L.; Garside,
Dan; Dyer, Alan R.; Liu, Kiang; Greenland, Philip. Low
risk-factor profile and long-term cardiovascular and noncardiovascular
mortality and life expectancy: findings for 5 large cohorts of young
adult and middle-aged men and women. JAMA: Journal of the American
Medical Association, Vol. 282, No. 21, Dec 1, 1999. 2,012-8 pp.
Chicago, Illinois. In Eng.
Long-term mortality rates for
individuals with favorable levels for three major risk factors (serum
cholesterol level, blood pressure, and smoking) are analyzed using U.S.
data from two prospective studies (the Multiple Risk Factor
Intervention Trial and the Chicago Heart Association Detection Project
in Industry) involving five cohorts based on age and sex. "Based
on these very large cohort studies, for individuals with favorable
levels of cholesterol and blood pressure who do not smoke and do not
have diabetes, MI (myocardial infarction), or ECG (electrocardiogram)
abnormalities, long-term mortality is much lower and longevity is much
greater. A substantial increase in the proportion of the population at
lifetime low risk could contribute decisively to ending the CHD
(coronary heart disease) epidemic."
Correspondence: J.
Stamler, Northwestern University Medical School, Department of
Preventive Medicine, 680 N Lake Shore Drive, Suite 1102 (D335) Chicago,
IL 60611. Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40333 Tabutin, Dominique; Willems,
Michel. Differential mortality by sex from birth to
adolescence: the historical experience of the West (1750-1930).
In: Too young to die: genes or gender? 1998. 17-52 pp. UN Department of
Economic and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
This is a
general review of the literature on differential mortality in the
developed countries from 1600 to 1930, with the focus on the nineteenth
and early twentieth centuries. There are sections on data and methods,
past assessments of sex differentials in mortality, findings relevant
to the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, sex differentials in
childhood and adolescent mortality between 1800 and 1930,
interrelations between sex differentials in mortality and the level of
mortality, regional and spatial differences in mortality by sex (the
case of Belgium), the causes of death leading to excess female
mortality, and a review of the findings presented and causal
hypothesis.
Correspondence: D. Tabutin, Université
Catholique de Louvain, Institut de Démographie, 1 place
Montesquieu, B.P. 17, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40334 Tabutin, Dominique.
Excess female mortality in Northern Africa since 1965: a
description. Population: An English Selection, Vol. 4, 1992.
187-207 pp. Paris, France. In Eng.
"Instead of similar life
expectancies for both sexes, there is now a gradual trend towards
longer life for women than for men.... The excess female mortality
which used to characterize the first years of life and the childbearing
years is progressively becoming a thing of the past. [The author poses
the following questions:] What is the situation in Algeria, Morocco,
Tunisia and Egypt, now that life expectancy in these countries has
risen to over 64 years? Is the pattern the same in all four countries?
Are there, as in other parts of the world, certain ages which are more
impervious to progress than others: the first years of life, for
instance?"
Correspondence: D. Tabutin,
Université Catholique de Louvain, Institut de
Démographie, 1 place Montesquieu, B.P. 17, 1348
Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. E-mail: tabutin@demo.ucl.ac.be.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40335 The BMI in Diverse Populations
Collaborative Group (Baltimore, Maryland). Effect of
smoking on the body mass index-mortality relation: empirical evidence
from 15 studies. American Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 150, No.
12, Dec 15, 1999. 1,297-308 pp. Baltimore, Maryland. In Eng.
"In this paper, the authors demonstrate that the estimated
body mass index of minimum mortality changes when data are analyzed
while ignoring smoking status; but they also demonstrate through a
simulation study that eliminating smokers from the data sets prior to
analysis produces results similar to those expected from the
elimination of numerically similar random proportions of the data sets
prior to analysis. Based on the results of these analyses, the authors
find no support for the commonly held practice of eliminating smokers
from a data set prior to examining the body mass index-mortality
relation." The geographical scope is worldwide.
Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40336 Valkonen, Tapani; Van Poppel,
Frans. The contribution of smoking to sex differences in
life expectancy: four Nordic countries and the Netherlands
1970-1989. European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 7, No. 3, Sep
1997. 302-10 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
"This paper gives
quantitative estimates of the effects of smoking on sex differences in
life expectancy at age 35 years in Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden and
The Netherlands during 1970-1989. The data on cause-specific mortality
by age and sex were obtained from standardized computer-tape
transcripts of the WHO mortality data bank.... On average, 2.4 years or
more than 40% of the total sex difference in life expectancy in
1970-1974 was estimated to be attributable to smoking in the 5
countries. By 1985-1989 the contribution of smoking dropped to 1.8
years or approximately 30% of the total difference. The contribution of
smoking to the sex difference was greatest in The Netherlands and
smallest in Sweden. As a result of the decline in smoking-attributable
male mortality, the sex difference in life expectancy diminished in
Finland in the 1980s. In the other countries the difference continued
to grow despite the increase in the loss of female life expectancy
caused by smoking."
Correspondence: T. Valkonen,
University of Helsinki, Department of Sociology, Population Research
Unit, P.O. Box 18, Unioninkatu 35, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40337 Valkonen, Tapani. The
widening differentials in adult mortality by socio-economic status and
their causes. In: Health and mortality: issues of global concern.
Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and Mortality, Brussels, 19-22
November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L. Cliquet. 1999. 291-312 pp.
Centrum voor Bevolkings- en Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels,
Belgium; UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs: New York, New
York. In Eng.
"The main purpose of this paper is to review and
assess research results describing changes in socioeconomic mortality
differentials since the 1970s. The paper focuses on adult mortality in
developed countries, excluding transitional economies." The
problems involved in measuring socioeconomic differences in mortality
are considered first. The author notes that socioeconomic differentials
are substantial in all the countries for which data are available and
should be a major concern of health and social policy makers.
Furthermore, the evidence suggests that the mortality gap between the
less and more privileged members of society is
growing.
Correspondence: T. Valkonen, University of
Helsinki, Department of Sociology, Population Research Unit, Hameentie
68B, 00550 Helsinki, Finland. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40338 Valkonen, Tapani. The
widening differentials in adult mortality by socioeconomic status and
their causes. [Die Vergrößerung der
sozioökonomischen Unterschiede in der Erwachsenenmortalität
durch Status und deren Ursachen.] Zeitschrift für
Bevölkerungswissenschaft, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1998. 263-92 pp.
Wiesbaden, Germany. In Ger. with sum. in Eng; Fre.
"The main
purpose of the article is to review and assess research results
describing changes in socioeconomic differentials in adult mortality
since the 1970s in developed countries.... The article first discusses
data sources and methods of measurement. It concludes that there exists
no singe valid method for measuring changes in mortality differences,
and conclusions concerning the widening or narrowing of differences may
depend on the method of measurement chosen. Socioeconomic differentials
in mortality are substantial in all countries.... [In] England and
Wales, four Nordic countries, Spain and the United States...relative
socioeconomic differences in mortality have increased among working-age
men in the 1980s. The increase has been mainly due to the more rapid
decline of mortality from cardiovascular diseases in the upper than
lower socioeconomic groups."
Correspondence: T.
Valkonen, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 18, 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40339 Vallin, Jacques.
Mortality, sex, and gender. [Mortalité, sexe et genre.]
Gender in Population Studies/Le Genre dans Les Etudes de Population,
1999. 38 pp. International Union for the Scientific Study of Population
[IUSSP]: Liège, Belgium. In Fre.
The extent to which
differential mortality by sex is due to biological differences or to
socioeconomic factors is explored. There are chapters on the genetic
factors that lead to higher male mortality, the social factors that
tend to increase female mortality, the factors that have reduced
mortality differentials by sex, and the factors that are now causing an
increase in early male mortality. The author concludes by examining the
apparent paradox whereby an increase in excess male mortality can occur
at the same time as a reduction in the gap in life expectancy by
sex.
Correspondence: International Union for the Scientific
Study of Population, 34 rue des Augustins, 4000 Liège, Belgium.
E-mail: iussp@iussp.org. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40340 Wei, Ming; Kampert, James B.; Barlow,
Carolyn E.; Nichaman, Milton Z.; Gibbons, Larry W.; Paffenbarger, Ralph
S.; Blair, Steven N. Relationship between low
cardiorespiratory fitness and mortality in normal-weight, overweight,
and obese men. JAMA: Journal of the American Medical Association,
Vol. 282, No. 16, Oct 27, 1999. 1,547-53 pp. Chicago, Illinois. In Eng.
The relationship between low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness
and mortality in overweight and obese men in the United States is
analyzed using data on 25,714 adult men in Dallas, Texas, who received
a medical examination between 1970 and 1993 and who were followed up to
the end of 1994. "In this analysis, low cardiorespiratory fitness
was a strong and independent predictor of CVD [cardiovascular disease]
and all-cause mortality and of comparable importance with that of
diabetes mellitus and other CVD risk
factors."
Correspondence: S. N. Blair, Cooper
Institute, 12330 Preston Road, Dallas, TX 75230. E-mail:
sblair@cooperinst.org. Location: Princeton University Library
(SZ).
65:40341 Weitoft, Gunilla R.; Gullberg,
Anders; Hjern, Anders; Rosén, Mans. Mortality
statistics in immigrant research: method for adjusting underestimation
of mortality. International Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No.
4, Aug 1999. 756-63 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
"The aim of
the present study has been to analyse mortality differences between
people born in Sweden and those who have immigrated into Sweden. For
this purpose we have used a specific method for addressing the
suspected underreporting of deaths of people born outside the Nordic
countries. This method, specially developed and used for this purpose,
focuses on information about income and social benefits as indicators
of residence in the country."
Correspondence: G. R.
Weitoft, Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, Center for
Epidemiology, 106 30 Stockholm, Sweden. E-mail:
gunilla.ringback@sos.se. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40342 Wolfson, Michael; Kaplan, George;
Lynch, John; Ross, Nancy; Backlund, Eric. Relation between
income inequality and mortality: empirical demonstration. British
Medical Journal, Vol. 319, No. 7215, Oct 9, 1999. 953-7 pp. London,
England. In Eng.
Data from the 1990 U.S. census and other official
sources are used to assess the extent to which the observed
associations at population level between income inequality and
mortality are statistical artifacts. The authors conclude that
"the observed associations in the United States at the state level
between income inequality and mortality cannot be entirely or
substantially explained as statistical artefacts of an underlying
individual level relation between income and mortality. There remains
an important association between income inequality and mortality at
state level over and above anything that could be accounted for by any
statistical artefact. This result reinforces the need to consider a
broad range of factors, including the social milieu, as fundamental
determinants of health." Comments are included by Hugh Gravelle
(pp. 955-6) and Richard G. Wilkinson (pp.
956-7).
Correspondence: M. Wolfson, Statistics Canada,
Institutions and Social Statistics Branch, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0T6,
Canada. E-mail: wolfson@statcan.ca. Location: Princeton
University Library (SZ).
Studies of demographic relevance on causes of death. Studies of morbidity and of public health measures are included only if they relate specifically to mortality. Also included are maternal mortality and comparisons of causes.
65:40343 Adetunji, Jacob.
HIV-infection and AIDS-related deaths in Africa. In: Health
and mortality: issues of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium
on Health and Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J.
Chamie and R. L. Cliquet. 1999. 442-67 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
"The objective
of this paper is to review the prevalence of HIV infection in Africa
and AIDS-related mortality and to assess the quality of the data
available from the region. The paper also discusses the consequences of
the high prevalence of HIV infections and AIDS, expected future trends
of the epidemic in Africa and the policy options
available."
Correspondence: J. Adetunji, Bowling Green
State University, Department of Sociology, Bowling Green, OH
43403-0231. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40344 Aguirre, Alejandro.
Maternal mortality in Mexico. [Mortalidad materna en
México.] Hechos de Población, ISBN 968-835-422-8. Jul
1999. 73 pp. Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México:
Toluca, Mexico. In Spa.
This study examines historical trends,
geographical differences, and other characteristics of maternal
mortality in Mexico using vital statistics data. Consideration is given
to causes of maternal mortality and to mortality differences by age and
socioeconomic status. Other sources of data, such as surveys, are also
reviewed.
Correspondence: Universidad Autónoma del
Estado de México, Centro de Investigación y Estudios
Avanzados de la Población, Avenida Instituto Literario No. 100
OTE, 50000 Toluca, Mexico. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40345 Aguirre, Alejandro.
Mexico: maternal mortality estimation from several sources.
[México: estimación de la mortalidad materna a partir de
diversas fuentes.] Notas de Población, Vol. 26, No. 67-68,
Jan-Dec 1998. 119-37 pp. Santiago, Chile. In Spa. with sum. in Eng.
The various sources of data on maternal mortality in Mexico are
assessed. "Vital statistics in Mexico are the main source of
information about maternal mortality. The coverage of the records of
deaths among women in child-bearing ages is reasonable (only 3.5% of
them go unrecorded); however, the main pitfall consists [of] the
misclassification of causes of death that leads to an underestimation
of maternal mortality. Other sources of information are: the reports of
the committees for the study of maternal mortality; reproductive age
mortality surveys (RAMOS), and the information required for Brass's
sisterhood method. Information from maternal mortality committees
[does] not...reach the coverage of vital statistics but sheds light
into the circumstances in which maternal deaths
occur."
Correspondence: A. Aguirre, El Colegio de
México, Camino al Ajusco 20, 10740 Mexico City, DF, Mexico.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40346 Arriaga, Eduardo. Causes
of death in developing countries and in countries with economies in
transition: an overview of current knowledge, data availability and
novel methods of data collection. In: Health and mortality: issues
of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and
Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L.
Cliquet. 1999. 84-109 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
"This article
presents first, an overview of the completeness of the registration of
deaths and causes of death in a range of countries; second it deals
with the most frequently encountered problems in collecting cause of
death statistics; finally it considers some possibilities of obtaining
information of causes of death for those countries where they are not
now available." The geographical focus is worldwide, with emphasis
on the situation in developing countries.
Correspondence:
E. Arriaga, U.S. Bureau of the Census, Population Division,
Washington, D.C. 20233. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40347 Banthia, Jayant; Dyson, Tim.
Smallpox in nineteenth-century India. Population and
Development Review, Vol. 25, No. 4, Dec 1999. 649-80, 83-5 pp. New
York, New York. In Eng. with sum. in Fre; Spa.
"At the start
of the nineteenth century roughly 80 percent of India's population had
no effective protection against [smallpox], and in these circumstances
virtually everyone suffered from it in childhood. The main exception
was Bengal, where indigenous practice of inoculation greatly limited
the prevalence of the disease. Smallpox case fatality in India was
high--around 25-30 percent in unprotected populations--and
significantly higher than estimated for unprotected populations in
eighteenth-century Europe.... The study demonstrates a close link
between the spread of vaccination and the decline of smallpox. Whereas
at the start of the nineteenth century the disease may have accounted
for more than 10 percent of all deaths in India, by the end of the
century smallpox had become a comparatively minor cause of death as a
result of improved vaccination coverage."
Correspondence:
J. Banthia, Office of the Registrar General, Ministry of Home
Affairs, 2/A Mansingh Road, New Delhi 110 011, India. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40348 Bobak, Martin; Marmot,
Michael. Alcohol and mortality in Russia: Is it different
than elsewhere? Annals of Epidemiology, Vol. 9, No. 6, Aug 1999.
335-8 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
The hypothesis that alcohol
drinking, and binge drinking in particular, is a major determinant of
recent fluctuations in mortality in Russia is examined. The authors
conclude that there is no direct evidence to support the hypothesis.
"Available estimates of alcohol consumption in Russia are low, and
the only published study on alcohol and mortality conducted in Russia
produced negative results. Increase in drinking prevalence alone would
not explain the mortality rise; increase in relative risk related to
alcohol would also be needed. The biological mechanisms which could
underlie the presumed strong effects of alcohol on heart disease are
not clear. On the other hand, binge drinking has not been addressed
adequately by research so far."
Correspondence: M.
Bobak, University College London, International Centre for Health and
Society, 1-19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 6BT, England. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40349 Boerma, J. Ties; Nunn, Andrew J.;
Whitworth, James A. G. Mortality impact of the AIDS
epidemic: evidence from community studies in less developed
countries. AIDS, Vol. 12, Suppl., 1998. 3-14 pp. London, England.
In Eng.
"This review focuses on the evidence of [AIDS]
mortality impact among adults and children in community studies. The
majority of these studies are located in Africa, particularly eastern
Africa, where the AIDS epidemic is conjectured to be older than in
other less developed countries.... Community studies show a two- to
threefold increase in total adult mortality with an even larger
increase in mortality among young adults in communities with adult HIV
prevalence levels below 10%."
Correspondence: J. T.
Boerma, University of North Carolina, Carolina Population Center, CB
8120 University Square East, Chapel Hill, NC 27516. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40350 Booth, Heather. Pacific
Island suicide in comparative perspective. Journal of Biosocial
Science, Vol. 31, No. 4, Oct 1999. 433-48 pp. Cambridge, England. In
Eng.
"All available data for thirteen Pacific Island nations
are used in a comparative analysis of suicide levels and
characteristics. Age, sex and method of suicide are examined in detail.
Global comparison shows Pacific rates are amongst the highest reported.
Female youth rates exceed male rates in Western Samoa and amongst Fiji
Indians. Method of suicide (paraquat ingestion) is instrumental in
determining high rates in Western Samoa, especially in females. The
broad causal theme is societal transition. Commonality and diversity
are discussed."
Correspondence: H. Booth, Australian
National University, Research School of Social Sciences, Demography
Program, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40351 Bruthans, Jan; Dzúrová,
Dagmar. Circulatory disease mortality in the Czech
Republic after the year 1989. [Úmrtnost na nemoci
obehové soustavy v Ceské republice po roce 1989.]
Demografie, Vol. 41, No. 3, 1999. 193-206 pp. Prague, Czech Republic.
In Cze. with sum. in Eng.
The authors analyze circulatory disease
(CD) mortality in the Czech Republic since 1989, with a focus on
disease diagnosis, education, family status, and geographical area.
Reasons for the decline in CD mortality are examined, including marital
status, education, economic activity, life style, and availability and
quality of health care.
Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40352 Chiasson, Mary A.; Berenson, Louise;
Li, Wenhui; Schwartz, Steven; Singh, Tejinder; Forlenza, Susan; Mojica,
Benjamin A.; Hamburg, Margaret A. Declining HIV/AIDS
mortality in New York City. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome, Vol. 21, No. 1, May 1999. 59-64 pp. Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. In Eng.
"New York City has only 3% of the U.S.
population but has reported nearly 16% of all AIDS cases.... This is an
observational study using the New York City vital events and AIDS case
surveillance registries to describe trends in HIV/AIDS mortality from
1983 through June 30, 1998.... Annual HIV/AIDS deaths increased
steadily until stabilizing at 7,046 in 1995, declined 29% to 4,998 in
1996, and declined 47% to 2,625 in 1997. Comparing data from 1997 with
those from 1995, declines occurred in all demographic groups and in all
major HIV transmission categories: 74% in men who have sex with men,
68% in injecting drug users, and 64% in heterosexuals. In the first 6
months of 1998, declines were smaller than they had been in previous
6-month intervals in all demographic groups except Hispanic males and
those between 35 and 44 years of age.... The precipitous 63% decline in
HIV/AIDS deaths from 1995 to 1997 occurred at the same time that more
effective antiretroviral therapies became widely
available."
Correspondence: M. A. Chiasson, New York
City Department of Health, CN 6, 125 Worth Street, New York, NY 10013.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40353 Chichakli, Lina O.; Atrash, Hani K.;
Mackay, Andrea P.; Musani, Altaf S.; Berg, Cynthia J.
Pregnancy-related mortality in the United States due to hemorrhage:
1979-1992. Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 94, No. 5, Pt. 1, Nov
1999. 721-5 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
The authors "study
trends and examine risk factors for pregnancy-related mortality due to
hemorrhage [using U.S. data on] pregnancy-related deaths from
1979-1992.... Hemorrhage is the leading cause of pregnancy-related
death in the United States. Black women have three times the risk of
death of white women."
Correspondence: H. K. Atrash,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Center for Chronic Disease
Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Reproductive Health, 4770
Buford Highway, MS K-23, Atlanta, GA 30341-3724. E-mail: hka1@cdc.gov.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40354 Cliff, Andrew; Haggett, Peter;
Smallman-Raynor, Matthew. Deciphering global epidemics:
analytical approaches to the disease records of world cities,
1888-1912. Cambridge Studies in Historical Geography, No. 26, ISBN
0-521-47266-0. LC 97-27050. 1998. xxiii, 469 pp. Cambridge University
Press: New York, New York/Cambridge, England. In Eng.
This work is
based on the epidemiological data that were collected and published by
the U.S. Public Health Service for the period 1887-1912 on a selection
of major cities around the world. The focus is on mortality from six
major diseases in 100 cities. "We have tried in this book to
present the data culled from these weekly records in a form which gives
some idea of the potential which lies buried in them. We have also laid
stress on the various analytical methods now available for drawing out
patterns from them, `deciphering' epidemics as we title the book."
The authors' data archives are also available for use by other
researchers.
Correspondence: Cambridge University Press,
Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge CB2 1RP, England.
Location: Princeton University Library.
65:40355 Conti, Susanna; Farchi, Gino;
Masocco, Maria; Toccaceli, Virgilia; Vichi, Monica. The
impact of the major causes of death on life expectancy in Italy.
International Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 5, Oct 1999. 905-10
pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
"This study aims to evaluate the
contribution of the reduction in major cardiovascular diseases (CVD),
malignant neoplasms (MN), accidents and AIDS mortality to the gains in
life expectancy observed [in Italy] during the decade 1985-1994, as
well as to calculate and compare the potential gains due to the partial
or total elimination of these causes.... The gain in life expectancy at
birth was 2.27 years for men and 2.16 for women. The major contribution
to this increase was the reduction in CVD mortality followed by fewer
deaths from accidents and MN. Conversely, AIDS caused a loss in the
length of life of adults."
Correspondence: S. Conti,
Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Laboratory of Epidemiology and
Biostatistics, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy. E-mail:
susanna@iss.it. Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40356 Cook, Rebecca J. The
human rights dimensions of maternal mortality. Gender in
Population Studies/Le Genre dans Les Etudes de Population, ISBN
2-87108-070-4. 1999. 23 pp. International Union for the Scientific
Study of Population [IUSSP]: Liège, Belgium. In Eng.
Reasons
for the collective failure at an international level to stem the tide
of maternal mortality, now estimated at about 585,000 maternal deaths
around the world each year, are explored. "My thesis is that the
preventable rate of maternal mortality is but a symptom, a tragic
symptom, of a larger social injustice of discrimination against women
and violation of women's human rights that societies are unwilling to
prevent, remedy and punish. The impressive work of the health
professions in recent decades to devise effective health interventions
and monitor their availability and use is a necessary, but not
sufficient, condition for the reduction of maternal mortality. The
reduction of avoidable maternal death is not only a matter of effective
health interventions, but also a matter of social
justice."
Correspondence: International Union for the
Scientific Study of Population, 34 rue des Augustins, 4000
Liège, Belgium. E-mail: iussp@iussp.org. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40357 Coupland, Robin M.; Meddings, David
R. Mortality associated with use of weapons in armed
conflicts, wartime atrocities, and civilian mass shootings: literature
review. British Medical Journal, Vol. 319, No. 7207, Aug 14, 1999.
407-10 pp. London, England. In Eng.
The authors investigate
"the implications of variation in mortality associated with use of
weapons in different contexts.... [They] reviewed official figures in
the medical literature on mortality from the use of conventional
weapons and firearms under various circumstances...." The results
indicate that "mortality from firearms depends not only on the
technology of the weapons or its ammunition but also on the context in
which it is used."
Correspondence: R. M. Coupland,
International Committee of the Red Cross, Unit of the Chief Medical
Officer, 19 avenue de la Paix, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland. E-mail:
rcoupland@icrc.org. Location: Princeton University Library
(SZ).
65:40358 Elu, María del C.; Langer,
Ana. Risk-free maternity in Mexico. [Maternidad sin
riesgos en México.] ISBN 968-6912-00-2. 1994. 220 pp. Instituto
Mexicano de Estudios Sociales: Mexico City, Mexico. In Spa.
This is
a selection of the papers presented at the National Conference on
Risk-free Maternity, held February 8-11, 1993, in Cocoyoc, Morelos,
Mexico. The conference brought together an interdisciplinary group of
legislators, doctors, social scientists, communicators, and
psychologists who examined ways to further reduce levels of maternal
mortality and improve reproductive health in Mexico. The 21 papers are
grouped under five headings, which deal with the scale of, factors
affecting, and consequences of maternal morbidity and mortality;
critical aspects of reproductive health; access, utilization, and
quality of family planning services; access, utilization, and quality
of services dealing with pregnancy, delivery, and abortion; and the
mobilization of resources.
Correspondence: Instituto
Mexicano de Estudios Sociales, Cuauhtémoc No. 176, Tepepan,
Xochimilco, 16020 Mexico City, DF, Mexico. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40359 Frankel, Stephen; Davey Smith,
George; Gunnell, David. Childhood socioeconomic position
and adult cardiovascular mortality: the Boyd Orr Cohort. American
Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 150, No. 10, Nov 15, 1999. 1,081-4 pp.
Baltimore, Maryland. In Eng.
"The relation between childhood
socioeconomic position and adult cardiovascular mortality is examined
in 3,750 individuals whose families took part in the Carnegie survey of
family diet and health in England and Scotland between 1937 and 1939.
The trend in coronary heart disease mortality across social position
groups was not statistically significant at conventional levels...,
while a strong linear trend was seen for stroke mortality....
Adjustment for the Townsend deprivation index of area of residence
during adult life did not materially alter these findings, indicating
that the effects of socioeconomic influences upon particular
cardiovascular diseases differ according to the age at which they are
experienced."
Correspondence: S. Frankel, University
of Bristol, Department of Social Medicine, Bristol BS8 2PR, England.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40360 Garenne, Michel; Tollman, Stephen;
Kahn, Kathleen; Gear, John. Causes of death in a rural
area in South Africa compared to two other situations (Senegal and
France). [Causes de décès dans une zone rurale
d'Afrique du sud comparées à deux autres situations
(Sénégal et France).] Les Dossiers du CEPED, No. 54, ISBN
2-87762-119-7. Jul 1999. 28 pp. Centre Français sur la
Population et le Développement [CEPED]: Paris, France. In Fre.
with sum. in Eng.
"The study compares the cause of death
profile in a rural area of South Africa (Agincourt, 1992-1995), with
that in a rural area of West Africa [Senegal] (Niakhar, 1983-1989), and
in a developed country with the same life expectancy (France, 1951) in
order to determine causes with high and low mortality and priorities
for future health interventions. In the two African sites, causes of
death were assessed by verbal autopsies, whereas they were derived from
regular cause of death registration in France. Age standardized death
rates were used to compare cause-specific mortality in the three
studies. Life expectancy in Agincourt was estimated at 66 years,
similar to that of France in 1951, and much higher than that of Niakhar
(49 years)." The results indicate that comparative studies of this
kind are feasible using data collected in verbal autopsies as well as
formal cause of death registration.
Correspondence: Centre
Français sur la Population et le Développement, 15 rue de
l'Ecole de Médecine, 75270 Paris Cedex 06, France. Author's
E-mail: garenne@ceped.ined.fr. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40361 Garfinkel, Lawrence; Mushinski,
Margaret. U.S. cancer incidence, mortality and survival:
1973-1996. Statistical Bulletin, Vol. 80, No. 3, Jul-Sep 1999.
23-32 pp. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In Eng.
The authors examine U.S.
trends in cancer incidence, mortality, and survival for the period
1973-1996. The focus is on lung, prostate, breast, and colorectal
cancer. "Between 1990 and 1996 the age-adjusted death rates for
all cancers had dropped 3.7 percent to 166.9 per 100,000 and incidence
rates had decreased 2.8 percent to 388.6. The overall decreases were
greater among men than women; male mortality rates dropped 6.2 percent
and incidence dropped 5.2 percent for men versus 1.8 and 1.9 percent,
respectively, for women."
Correspondence: L.
Garfinkel, American Cancer Society, Epidemiology and Surveillance
Research, 1599 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30329-4251. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40362 Gillum, Richard F. Risk
factors for stroke in Blacks: a critical review. American Journal
of Epidemiology, Vol. 150, No. 12, Dec 15, 1999. 1,266-74 pp.
Baltimore, Maryland. In Eng.
"Stroke is the third leading
cause of death in U.S. Blacks.... Mortality rates are higher in Blacks
than in Whites in the United States at ages below 70 years. In Blacks,
advanced age, elevated blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, and smoking
are the only risk factors for stroke whose status has been firmly
established by published data.... Higher prevalences of hypertension,
diabetes, obesity (in women), elevated lipoprotein (a) level, smoking
(in men), and low socioeconomic status may contribute to the higher
stroke incidence and mortality in U.S. Blacks as compared with Whites.
However, further environmental influences must be studied and candidate
genes identified before assuming that racial differences can be
attributed to inborn susceptibility linked to inheritance of specific
genes."
Correspondence: R. F. Gillum, U.S. National
Center for Health Statistics, 6525 Belcrest Road, Room 730,
Hyattsville, MD 20782-2003. Location: Princeton University
Library (SZ).
65:40363 Gilmour, Heather; Gentleman, Jane
F. Mortality in metropolitan areas. Health
Reports/Rapports sur la Santé, Vol. 11, No. 1, Summer 1999. 9-19
pp. Ottawa, Canada. In Eng.
"This article examines differences
in all causes mortality rates and rates for leading causes of death
(heart disease, cancer and cerebrovascular disease) by census
metropolitan area (CMA) [for Canada].... Annualized age-standardized
mortality rates were calculated for Canada and for each CMA for the
three-year period from 1994 to 1996. Differences between the CMA rates
and the National rate were examined."
Correspondence:
H. Gilmour, Statistics Canada, Canadian Centre for Justice
Statistics, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0T6, Canada. E-mail:
gilmhea@statcan.ca. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40364 Granberg, Donald; Westerberg,
Charles. On abandoning life when it is least
difficult. Social Biology, Vol. 46, No. 1-2, Spring-Summer 1999.
154-62 pp. Port Angeles, Washington. In Eng.
"Suicide data
from Sweden (1911-1993) and New Zealand (1975-1995) were used to test a
hypothesis derived as an extension of the Seasonal Affective Disorder
concept. Contrary to the hypothesis, but similar to what Durkheim had
reported regarding Central Europe in the nineteenth century, suicides
peaked in late spring (May in Sweden, November in New Zealand).
Durkheim's hypothesis that there would be more monthly variation in
suicides in rural areas was strongly supported. Our hypothesis is that
people abandon life when it is least difficult because of a disjuncture
between experience and expectation."
Correspondence:
D. Granberg, University of Missouri, Department of Sociology,
Columbia, MO 65211. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40365 Hart, Carole L.; Davey Smith, George;
Hole, David J.; Hawthorne, Victor M. Alcohol consumption
and mortality from all causes, coronary heart disease, and stroke:
results from a prospective cohort study of Scottish men with 21 years
of follow up. British Medical Journal, Vol. 318, No. 7200, Jun 26,
1999. 1,725-9 pp. London, England. In Eng.
The authors assess the
relation between alcohol consumption and mortality using data for 5,766
men aged 35-64 who were living in Scotland and screened in 1970-1973.
"Risk for all cause mortality was similar for non-drinkers and men
drinking up to 14 units a week. Mortality risk then showed a graded
association with alcohol consumption.... Adjustment for risk factors
attenuated the increased relative risks, but they remained
significantly above 1 for men drinking 22 or more units a week. There
was no strong relation between alcohol consumption and mortality from
coronary heart disease after adjustment. A strong positive relation was
seen between alcohol consumption and risks of mortality from stroke,
with men drinking 35 or more units having double the risk of
non-drinkers, even after adjustment."
Correspondence:
G. Davey Smith, University of Bristol, Department of Social
Medicine, Bristol BS8 2PR, England. E-mail: zetkin@bristol.ac.uk.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40366 Hieu, Do Trong; Hanenberg, Robert;
Vach, Trinh Huu; Vinh, Dao Quang; Sokal, David. Maternal
mortality in Vietnam in 1994-95. Studies in Family Planning, Vol.
30, No. 4, Dec 1999. 329-38 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
"This report presents...population-based estimates of maternal
mortality in Vietnam. All the deaths of women aged 15-49 in 1994-95 in
three provinces of Vietnam were identified and classified by cause.
Maternal mortality was the fifth most frequent cause of death. The
maternal mortality ratio was 155 deaths per 100,000 live births. This
ratio compares with the World Health Organization's estimates of 430
such deaths globally and 390 for Asia.... Maternal mortality is low in
Vietnam primarily because a relatively high proportion of deliveries
take place in clinics and hospitals, where few women die in childbirth.
Also, few women die of the consequences of induced abortion in Vietnam
because the procedure is legal and easily
available."
Correspondence: R. Hanenberg, Family
Health International, Clinical Research Department, P.O. Box 13950,
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709. E-mail: bob@sanfranmail.com.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40367 Hoffmeister, Hans; Schelp,
Frank-Peter; Mensink, Gert B. M.; Dietz, Ekkehart; Böhning,
Dankmar. The relationship between alcohol consumption,
health indicators and mortality in the German population.
International Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 6, Dec 1999.
1,066-72 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
The impact of total alcohol,
beer, and wine consumption in Germany on cardiovascular and all-cause
mortality is assessed. Data are for 15,400 individuals from the
National Health Survey and 2,370 from the Berlin-Spandau regional
sample of the survey. "The results suggest that light (and
possibly moderate) alcohol consumption reduces the risk of
cardiovascular and total mortality risk and is favourably related to
HDL-cholesterol."
Correspondence: H. Hoffmeister,
Freie Universität Berlin, Institut für Soziale Medizin,
Fabeckstraße 60-62, 14195 Berlin, Germany. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40368 Hopkins, Frederick W.; MacKay, Andrea
P.; Koonin, Lisa M.; Berg, Cynthia J.; Irwin, Molly; Atrash, Hani
K. Pregnancy-related mortality in Hispanic women in the
United States. Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 94, No. 5, Pt. 1,
Nov 1999. 747-52 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
The authors
"examine pregnancy-related mortality among Hispanic women in the
United States.... Pregnancy-related mortality ratios for Hispanic women
were higher than those for non-Hispanic white women, but markedly lower
than those for black women. The similarity in socioeconomic status
between Hispanic and black women was not an indicator of similar health
outcomes."
Correspondence: A. P. MacKay, National
Center for Health Statistics, 6525 Belcrest Road, MS P08, Hyattsville,
MD 20782-2003. E-mail: anm3@cdc.gov. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40369 Howell, Elizabeth A.; Chen, Ya-Ting;
Concato, John. Differences in cervical cancer mortality
among black and white women. Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 94,
No. 4, Oct 1999. 509-15 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
Reasons for
the mortality differences that exist in the United States between black
and white women with cervical cancer are investigated using data from
the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program for
1988-1994. The focus is on the importance of differences in stage of
disease and treatment patterns by race. The results indicate that
"race remains an independent predictor of cervical cancer survival
after accounting for age, state of disease, treatment patterns, and
other factors."
Correspondence: E. A. Howell, Yale
University School of Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars,
IE-61 SHM, 333 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06520-8025. E-mail:
elizabeth.howell@yale.edu. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40370 Im-em, Wassana.
Mortality trends and levels to verify the AIDS epidemic in
Thailand: analysis from death registration statistics, 1984-1997.
ISBN 974-662-960-3. 1999. xi, 179 pp. Mahidol University, Institute for
Population and Social Research [IPSR]: Nakhon Pathom, Thailand. In Eng.
This study uses vital registration statistics on mortality in
Thailand to explore the extent of the AIDS epidemic from 1984 to 1997.
Deaths from AIDS began showing significant increases after 1991.
"While the death rates had increased substantially among men aged
25-29 in the past three years, the death rates of women in the same age
group show little change over time. At the regional level the highest
death rate was in the North region where the male death rate sharply
increased in the past three years, followed by the Northeast region....
About 200,000 AIDS deaths throughout the country were estimated over
the period 1992-1996."
Correspondence: Mahidol
University, Institute for Population and Social Research, 25/25
Puthamonthon 4 Road, Salaya, Nakhon Pathom 73170, Thailand. E-mail:
prwie@mahidol.ac.th. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40371 Joint United Nations Programme on
HIV/AIDS [UNAIDS] (Geneva, Switzerland); World Health Organization
[WHO] (Geneva, Switzerland). AIDS epidemic update:
December 1999. Dec 1999. 23 pp. Geneva, Switzerland. In Eng.
Some global estimates concerning HIV and AIDS are presented as of
the end of 1999. Data are included on people newly infected with HIV in
1999, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS, AIDS deaths in 1999,
and the total number of AIDS deaths since the beginning of the
epidemic.
Correspondence: UNAIDS, World Health
Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland. E-mail:
unaids@unaids.org. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40372 Kafadar, Karen.
Simultaneous smoothing and adjusting mortality rates in U.S.
counties: melanoma in white females and white males. Statistics in
Medicine, Vol. 18, No. 23, Dec 15, 1999. 3,167-88 pp. Chichester,
England. In Eng.
"Detecting patterns in health-related data
for geographic areas is facilitated with the use of exploratory
methods, especially smoothing. In addition, these data often must be
adjusted for known prognostic factors such as age and gender. The
analysis in this paper focuses on mortality rates due to malignant
melanoma in White males and White females; these data are adjusted for
both age and latitude, separately for males and females, and then
smoothed using (a) a non-linear smoother known as weighted
head-banging, and (b) a new method that incorporates the adjustment and
the smoothing simultaneously. Maps of the continental United States
show regions of high rates, even after having adjusted for age and
latitude, and suggest the possibility of other variables that may
influence the rates."
Correspondence: K. Kafadar,
University of Colorado, Department of Mathematics, Box 170, Denver, CO
80217-3364. E-mail: kk@math.cudenver.edu. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40373 Kahn, Kathleen; Tollman, Stephen M.;
Garenne, Michel; Gear, John S. S. Who dies from what?
Determining cause of death in South Africa's rural north-east.
Tropical Medicine and International Health, Vol. 4, No. 6, Jun 1999.
433-41 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
An analysis of the causes of
death in the Agincourt subdistrict of South Africa is presented, using
data on 932 deaths occurring between 1992 and 1995 and the method of
verbal autopsies to identify the cause of death. "The profile of
deaths reflects a mixed picture: the `unfinished agenda' of
communicable disease and malnutrition (diarrhoea and kwashiorkor
predominantly) are responsible for over half of deaths in under-fives,
accidents are prominent in the 5-14 age-group, while the `emerging
agenda' of violence and chronic degenerative disease (particularly
circulatory disease) is pronounced among the middle-aged and elderly.
This profile shows the social and demographic transition to be well
underway within a rural, under-developed population." The study
also confirmed the value of this method of data collection for planning
purposes.
Correspondence: K. Kahn, University of the
Witwatersrand, Department of Community Health, Faculty of Health
Sciences, 7 York Road, Parktown, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa.
E-mail: 081kahn@chiron.wits.ac.za. Location: Princeton
University Library (SZ).
65:40374 Levi, F.; Lucchini, F.; Negri, E.;
Boyle, P.; La Vecchia, C. Cancer mortality in Europe,
1990-1994, and an overview of trends from 1955 to 1994. European
Journal of Cancer, Vol. 35, No. 10, 1999. 1,477-516 pp. Oxford,
England. In Eng.
"Mortality data, abstracted from the WHO
database, are presented in tabular form for 26 cancer sites or groups
of sites, plus total cancer mortality, in 35 European countries during
the period 1990-1994. Trends in mortality are also given in graphical
form for 24 major countries over the period 1955-1994. In most western
European countries total cancer mortality was--for the first
time-moderately downwards in the early 1990s. Such favourable trends
included some decline in lung cancer mortality for males, the
persistent decline in stomach cancer for both sexes, and of cervical
cancer for women, as well as some decline in breast and colorectal
cancers, plus other neoplasms (testis, lymphoid neoplasms), whose
treatment has further improved over the last few years. However, cancer
mortality was still upwards in a few southern and eastern European
countries, including Hungary and Poland, where total cancer mortality
rates in middle-aged males are now the highest ever registered in
Europe. The favourable trends in western Europe over the recent years
are similar to those observed in the USA."
Correspondence:
F. Levi, Registre Vaudois des Tumeurs, Falaises 1, 1011 Lausanne,
Switzerland. E-mail: fabio.levi@inst.hospvd.ch. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40375 Levi, Fabio; Lucchini, Franca; La
Vecchia, Carlo; Negri, Eva. Trends in mortality from
cancer in the European Union, 1955-94. Lancet, Vol. 354, No. 9180,
Aug 28, 1999. 742-3 pp. New York, New York/London, England. In Eng.
Using WHO data, the authors describe trends in cancer mortality in
the countries of the European Union from 1955 to 1994. They note that
"over the past few years, age-standardised mortality rates have
levelled off or declined for most cancer sites in the European Union,
with the main exception of lung cancer in
women."
Correspondence: F. Levi, Registre Vaudois des
Tumeurs, CHUV-Falaises 1, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40376 Mäkelä, Pia.
Alcohol-related mortality by age and sex and its impact on life
expectancy: estimates based on the Finnish death register.
European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 8, No. 1, Mar 1998. 43-51 pp.
Oxford, England. In Eng.
Data from the Finnish death register for
the period 1987-1993 are used "to examine alcohol-related
mortality by cause of death, age and sex and to estimate the impact of
excessive alcohol use on life expectancy by sex. According to the
results, 6% of all deaths were alcohol related. These deaths were
responsible for a 2 year loss in life expectancy at age 15 years among
men and 0.4 years among women, which explains at least one-fifth of the
difference in life expectancies between the sexes.... The use of data
on contributory causes of death, the organization of the Finnish death
certification system and the relatively high proportion of
alcohol-related deaths suggest that these data do not underestimate
alcohol-related deaths to such an extent as has been the case in
earlier studies using data from death certificates. This study shows
that alcohol consumption is an important public health issue in Finland
and a significant determinant of male premature
mortality."
Correspondence: P. Mäkelä,
University of Helsinki, Department of Sociology, Population Research
Unit, P.O. Box 18, 00014 Helsinki, Finland. E-mail:
pia.makela@helsinki.fi. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40377 Mocroft, A.; Vella, S.; Benfield, T.
L.; Chiesi, A.; Miller, V.; Gargalianos, P.; d'Arminio Monforte, A.;
Yust, I.; Bruun, J. N.; Phillips, A. N.; Lundgren, J. D.
Changing patterns of mortality across Europe in patients infected
with HIV-1. Lancet, Vol. 352, No. 9142, Nov 28, 1998. 1,725-30 pp.
New York, New York/London, England. In Eng.
"We analysed data
from EuroSIDA, which is a prospective, observational, European,
multicentre cohort of 4,270 HIV-1-infected patients. We compared death
rates in each 6 month period from September, 1994, to March, 1998....
Death rates across Europe among patients infected with HIV-1 have been
falling since September, 1995, and at the beginning of 1998 were less
than a fifth of their previous level. A large proportion of the
reduction in mortality could be explained by new treatments or
combinations of treatments."
Correspondence: A.
Mocroft, Royal Free and University College Medical School, Royal Free
Centre for HIV Medicine, Royal Free Campus, London NW3 2PF, England.
E-mail: amanda@rfhsm.ac.uk. Location: Princeton University
Library (SZ).
65:40378 Moore, Sophie E.; Cole, Timothy J.;
Collinson, Andrew C.; Poskitt, Elizabeth M. E.; McGregor, Ian A.;
Prentice, Andrew M. Prenatal or early postnatal events
predict infectious deaths in young adulthood in rural Africa.
International Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 6, Dec 1999.
1,088-95 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
The authors present evidence
that risk of death from infectious disease in early adulthood is
programmed by early life events. The data are for 3,162 individuals
living in three Gambian villages, and have been collected since 1949.
"Early life exposures, correlated with season of birth, strongly
influence susceptibility to fatal infections in young adulthood. The
evidence suggests that nutritionally-mediated intrauterine growth
retardation may permanently impair the development of immune
function."
Correspondence: A. M. Prentice, London
School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Public Health Nutrition Unit,
MRC International Nutrition Group, 49-51 Bedford Square, London WC1B
3DP, England. E-mail: a.prentice@lshtm.ac.uk. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40379 Mungra, A.; van Kanten, R. W.;
Kanhai, H. H. H.; van Roosmalen, J. Nationwide maternal
mortality in Surinam. British Journal of Obstetrics and
Gynaecology, Vol. 106, No. 1, Jan 1999. 55-9 pp. Oxford, England. In
Eng.
The authors "assess the magnitude, causes and associated
factors of maternal mortality in Surinam.... The national maternal
mortality ratio was 226 per 100,000 live births, which is six times
higher than the official maternal mortality ratio of 38 for the
preceding three year period.... In 95% of analysed cases, substandard
care factors which had contributed to the deaths were present at one or
more levels of maternity care."
Correspondence: J. van
Roosmalen, Leiden University Medical Centre, Department of Obstetrics,
P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, Netherlands. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40380 Munoz-Pérez, F.; Nizard,
A. Alcohol consumption and cirrhosis mortality in the
industrialised countries since 1950. European Journal of
Population/Revue Européenne de Démographie, Vol. 14, No.
4, 1998-1999. 367-86 pp. Dordrecht, Netherlands. In Eng. with sum. in
Fre.
"Over the past fifty years, there has been a substantial
rise in life expectancy at birth in the industrialised countries. This
progress has been achieved despite the appearance or resurgence of
factors, such as higher alcohol consumption, which contribute to a
growth in mortality. Yet, in Eastern Europe over the last 20 to 25
years, the increase in consumption first checked the rise in life
expectancy and then went on to play a role in its decline. In the
present study, we shall first show the changes that have occurred in
alcohol consumption in twenty-two industrialised countries (or
territories) since 1950, and then analyse its effects on adult
mortality...."
Correspondence: F. Munoz-Perez,
Institut National d'Etudes Démographiques, 133 boulevard Davout,
75980 Paris Cedex 20, France. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40381 Nemtsov, A. V.
Alcohol-related harm and alcohol consumption in Moscow before,
during and after a major anti-alcohol campaign. Addiction, Vol.
93, No. 10, Oct 1998. 1,501-10 pp. Abingdon, England. In Eng.
Rates
of alcohol-related harm in relation to levels of alcohol consumption in
Moscow, Russia, are analyzed before, during, and after a major
anti-alcohol campaign. "Following the 1985 anti-alcohol
campaign...admissions for alcohol-related mental and behavioural
disorders, deaths from liver cirrhosis, alcohol poisoning and other
blood alcohol positive violent deaths decreased by 63.3%, 33.0%, 50.8%
and 50.9%, respectively. There was a linear correlation between medical
variables and alcohol consumption during its decrease in 1985-86. An
increase in blood alcohol positive violent deaths began in 1987, before
the increases in other variables. Growth of total alcohol consumption
began in 1987, and continued during all subsequent years, although it
was especially high in 1992-93 at the time of the introduction of
market reforms in Russia.... The findings provide stark evidence of the
potential impact of policy measures applied to general alcohol
consumption on alcohol-related harm."
Correspondence:
A. V. Nemtsov, Moscow Research Institute of Psychiatry, MPH RF,
Poteschnaya Str. 3, Moscow 107076, Russia. E-mail: niip@glasnet.ru.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40382 Paim, Jairnilson S.; Costa, Maria da
C. N.; Mascarenhas, Joane C. S.; da Silva, Lígia M. V.
The spatial distribution of violence: mortality due to external
causes in Salvador (Bahia), Brazil. [Distribuição
espacial da violência: mortalidade por causas externas em
Salvador (Bahia), Brasil.] Revista Panamericana de Salud
Pública/Pan American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 6, No. 5,
Nov 1999. 321-32 pp. Washington, D.C. In Por. with sum. in Eng.
"The aim of this paper was to describe the geographic
distribution of mortality resulting from external causes during 1991
within the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.... Of the deaths in that
year, 15% were due to external causes, corresponding to a mortality
rate of 78/100,000 inhabitants. The homicide death rate was
32.2/100,000 inhabitants, and the traffic-related death rate was
21.8/100,000 inhabitants. The elderly, young adults, and teenagers were
at higher risk of death from violent causes. Among the elderly, 38% of
the deaths were from car accidents and 28% from falls. Among teenagers,
homicides were the main cause of death, especially in males between 15
and 29 years of age. Our results show that the geographic distribution
of violent deaths in Salvador is uneven. Such deaths occur mainly in
poorer neighborhoods, which have higher violent death rates than
average for the city of Salvador."
Correspondence: J.
S. Paim, Rua Padre Feijó 29, 4o andar, CHR, Canela, CEP
40110-170, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. E-mail: jairnil@ufba.br.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40383 Pickle, Linda W.; Mungiole, Michael;
Jones, Gretchen K.; White, Andrew A. Exploring spatial
patterns of mortality: the new Atlas of United States Mortality.
Statistics in Medicine, Vol. 18, No. 23, Dec 15, 1999. 3,211-20 pp.
Chichester, England. In Eng.
This article examines aspects of the
methodology used to prepare maps in a recent atlas of the leading
causes of death in the United States for the period 1988-1992.
"Because recent cognitive research demonstrated that no one map
style is optimal for answering many different map questions, maps and
graphs of several different mortality statistics are included for each
cause of death. New mixed effects models were developed to provide
predicted rates and improved variance estimates. Results from these
models were smoothed using a weighted head-banging algorithm to produce
maps of general spatial trends free of background noise. Maps of White
female lung cancer rates from the new atlas are presented here to
illustrate how this innovative combination of maps and graphs permits
greater exploration of the underlying mortality data than is possible
from previous single-map atlas designs."
For the atlas referred
to, published in 1996, see 63:30233.
Correspondence: L. W.
Pickle, NCI/DCCPS, 6130 Executive Boulevard, MSC 7344, EPN Room 313,
Bethesda, MD 20892. E-mail: picklel@mail.nih.gov. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40384 Pictet, Gabriel; Le Coeur, Sophie;
M'Pelé, Pierre; Brouard, Nicolas; Lallemant, Marc.
Contribution of AIDS to the general mortality in Central Africa:
evidence from a morgue-based study in Brazzaville, Congo. AIDS,
Vol. 12, No. 16, Nov 12, 1998. 2,217-23 pp. London, England. In Eng.
An attempt is made to measure AIDS-related mortality in
Brazzaville, Congo, and its impact on life expectancy using data on all
bodies handled by the city's three morgues in a one-month period in the
summer of 1996. "Amongst the 756 bodies examined at the three
morgues, 149 (19.7%) AIDS cases were identified. HIV-1 prevalence was
26.2% (38 out of 145) amongst the subjects in the two morgues where HIV
serology was systematically performed. AIDS was the leading cause of
death in adults...with 25.1% (122 out of 487) of the adults diagnosed
with AIDS. The proportion of adult female AIDS cases was significantly
higher than the proportion of male cases.... Moreover, female AIDS
cases were significantly younger than male cases.... Overall AIDS
mortality rate amongst adults was 2.8 per 1,000 for men and 3.2 per
1,000 for women. The impact of AIDS on life expectancy at birth is 4.3
years for women and 3.3 years for men."
Correspondence:
S. Le Coeur, Institut National d'Etudes Démographiques, 133
boulevard Davout, 75980 Paris Cedex 20, France. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40385 Pisani, Paola; Parkin, D. Maxwell;
Bray, Freddie; Ferlay, Jacques. Estimates of the worldwide
mortality from 25 cancers in 1990. International Journal of
Cancer/Journal International du Cancer, Vol. 83, No. 1, Sep 24, 1999.
18-29 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
"We present here
estimates of mortality from cancer for 25 specific sites and for all
malignant neoplasms in 23 geographical regions of the world for which
the United Nations...prepares regular population estimates.... To make
these estimates, we have utilised not only the mortality data from the
WHO databank but also any other existing data on cancer which could
provide information on probable mortality."
Correspondence:
P. Pisani, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Unit of
Descriptive Epidemiology, 150 cours Albert Thomas, 69372 Lyon Cedex 08,
France. E-mail: pisani@iarc.fr. Location: Princeton University
Library (SZ).
65:40386 Preti, Antonio; Miotto,
Paola. Suicide and unemployment in Italy, 1982-1994.
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, Vol. 53, No. 11, Nov
1999. 694-701 pp. London, England. In Eng.
The authors
"investigate whether either the condition of being unemployed, or
changes in unemployment rates are associated with suicide risk....
[Data are for] 20,457 deaths by suicide registered in Italy among
economically active people from 1982 to 1994.... Suicide rates among
the unemployed are clearly and constantly higher than those among the
employed: up to three times higher among men, and twice as high among
women. Among the unemployed a clear and significant rise in suicide
rates in both sexes took place over the study period; suicide rates
among the employed showed a less marked
increase."
Correspondence: A. Preti, CMG, Psychiatry
Branch, via Costantinopoli 42, 09129 Cagliari, Italy. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40387 Quinn, M. J.; Martinez-Garcia, C.;
Berrino, F. Variations in survival from breast cancer in
Europe by age and country, 1978-1989. European Journal of Cancer,
Vol. 34, No. 14, Dec 1998. 2,204-11 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
"The objective of this study, part of the wider EUROCARE II
collaborative project, was to examine variations by age and country in
the relative survival of women from breast cancer in Europe, based on
data for 145,000 cases in 1985-1989 and trends based on (245,000) cases
for 1978-1989. Data were supplied by 42 cancer registries in 17
countries to a common protocol.... In 1985-1989 there were wide
differences among the 17 countries: survival was above the European
average in Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, France and Italy;
around average in Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany and Spain; below
average in Scotland, England and Slovenia; and well below average in
Slovakia, Poland and Estonia. In France, Spain and Italy, but not in
the U.K., there were wide differences in survival among the
participating registries. Survival generally declined with age,
particularly in the elderly (75 years and over)--this was most marked
in Denmark, Scotland and England. Over the period 1978-1989, 1-year
survival improved by 2% overall and 5-year survival by 6%. There were
improvements in 5-year survival in all countries except Iceland,
Germany, Switzerland and Estonia, and in all age groups except the
youngest (15-44 years). It is likely that differences in the access to
and quality of care in the various countries played a large part in
explaining the differences in survival."
Correspondence:
M. J. Quinn, Office for National Statistics, National Cancer
Registration Bureau, B6/02, 1 Drummond Gate, London SW1V 2QQ, England.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40388 Razum, Oliver; Jahn, Albrecht; Snow,
Rachel. Maternal mortality in the former East Germany
before and after reunification: changes in risk by marital status.
British Medical Journal, Vol. 319, No. 7217, Oct 23, 1999. 1,104-5 pp.
London, England. In Eng.
The impact of marital status on maternal
mortality in East Germany is analyzed, with the emphasis on changes
associated with German reunification in 1990. The results indicate that
"before reunification, unmarried women had a risk of maternal
death equal to that of married women...; after reunification, they had
2.6 times the age adjusted risk of married women. Unmarried status thus
became a significant risk factor for maternal mortality in eastern
Germany after reunification."
Correspondence: O.
Razum, Heidelberg University, Department of Tropical Hygiene and Public
Health, Im Neuenheimer Feld 324, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany. E-mail:
oliver.razum@urz.uni-heidelberg.de. Location: Princeton
University Library (SZ).
65:40389 Razum, Oliver; Jahn, Albrecht;
Blettner, Maria; Reitmaier, Pitt. Trends in maternal
mortality ratio among women of German and non-German nationality in
West Germany, 1980-1996. International Journal of Epidemiology,
Vol. 28, No. 5, Oct 1999. 919-24 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
Differences in maternal mortality in the former West Germany
between women of German and non-German nationality are analyzed using
official vital statistics data for the period 1980-1996. "Our
findings suggest continuously improving accessibility and quality of
obstetric services, in particular for women of non-German nationality.
Still, inequity in maternal risk continues to exist. Maternal risk,
however, is not determined by the simple distinction `German' versus
`non-German'; its association with socioeconomic status extends beyond
nationality."
Correspondence: O. Razum, University of
Heidelberg, Department of Tropical Hygiene and Public Health, Im
Neuenheimer Feld 324, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany. E-mail:
oliver.razum@urz.uni-heidelberg.de. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40390 Roger, V. V. L.; Jacobsen, S. J.;
Weston, S. A.; Gabriel, S. E. Sex differences in the
epidemiology and outcomes of heart disease: population-based
trends. Lupus, Vol. 8, No. 5, 1999. 346-50 pp. Basingstoke,
England. In Eng.
Trends in heart disease (HD) mortality in Olmsted
County, Minnesota, are analyzed by sex. "Between 1979 and 1994,
women experienced 51% of the total number of HD...deaths (3,095).
Age-adjusted HD mortality rate declined from 123 per 100,000...in 1979
to 81...in 1994. The risk ratio (RR) of HD death in 1994 compared to
1979 was 0.69 for women vs. 0.53 for men (P=0.06). This equates to a
decline in HD mortality of 2.5% [per year] in women and 4.2% [per year]
in men. The decline in HD mortality was less pronounced in older age
groups (P<0.001), reflecting a shift of the burden of HD towards
women and the elderly."
Correspondence: V. V. L.
Roger, Mayo Clinic, 200 First Street SW, Rochester, MN 55905.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40391 Saraiya, Mona; Green, Clarice A.;
Berg, Cynthia J.; Hopkins, Frederick W.; Koonin, Lisa M.; Atrash, Hani
K. Spontaneous abortion-related deaths among women in the
United States--1981-1991. Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 94, No.
2, Aug 1999. 172-6 pp. New York, New York. In Eng.
The authors
"examine [U.S.] trends in spontaneous abortion-related mortality
and risk factors for these deaths from 1981 through 1991.... During
1981-1991, a total of 62 spontaneous abortion-related deaths were
reported to the Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System.... Women 35
years of age and older, of races other than white, and in the second
trimester of pregnancy age are at increased risk of death from
spontaneous abortion."
Correspondence: M. Saraiya,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Cancer
Prevention and Control, Mailstop K-55, Atlanta, GA 30341. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40392 Sekikawa, A.; Kuller, L. H.; Ueshima,
H.; Park, J. E.; Suh, I.; Jee, S. H.; Lee, H. K.; Pan, W. H.
Coronary heart disease mortality trends in men in the post World
War II birth cohorts aged 35-44 in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan
compared with the United States. International Journal of
Epidemiology, Vol. 28, No. 6, Dec 1999. 1,044-9 pp. Oxford, England. In
Eng.
Recent trends in coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality among
men aged 35-44 in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan are compared with
those in the United States. It is noted that, although CHD mortality in
this group has recently increased in South Korea and Taiwan, it seems
to have decreased in Japan. The authors make the case that the apparent
continued low CHD mortality rate in Japan may be a statistical artifact
due to differences in allocating causes of death among the countries
studied.
Correspondence: A. Sekikawa, 3460 Fifth Avenue,
5th floor, Pittsburgh, PA 15260. E-mail: akira+@pitt.edu. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40393 Sethi, Dinesh; Zwi, Anthony.
Accidents and other injuries. In: Health and mortality: issues
of global concern. Proceedings of the Symposium on Health and
Mortality, Brussels, 19-22 November 1997, edited by J. Chamie and R. L.
Cliquet. 1999. 412-41 pp. Centrum voor Bevolkings- en
Gezinsstudiën [CBGS]: Brussels, Belgium; UN Department of Economic
and Social Affairs: New York, New York. In Eng.
This is a global
analysis of the impact of accidents or injuries on morbidity and
mortality. "This paper touches upon the global scale of the burden
injury, variations by region, and considers the availability of
interventions. The term 'injuries' represents a wide range of different
types of problems, each with different sets of risk factors, risk
situations and risk groups: we consider traffic injuries as our main
example, but also illustrate our discussion with reference to other
injuries for illustrative purposes. We do not seek to present a fully
comprehensive discussion. Rather we highlight a range of problems and
begin to explore elements of an appropriate policy response and how
this may be supported by international
organisations."
Correspondence: D. Sethi, London
School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Health Policy Unit, Keppel
Street, London WC1E 7HT, England. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40394 Shahpar, Cyrus; Li, Guohua.
Homicide mortality in the United States, 1935-1994: age, period,
and cohort effects. American Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 150,
No. 11, Dec 1, 1999. 1,213-22 pp. Baltimore, Maryland. In Eng.
"The authors analyzed homicide mortality data for the United
States from 1935 to 1994, to delineate temporal trends and birth cohort
patterns. This study included 850,822 homicide-attributed deaths
documented by the National Center for Health Statistics.... Death rates
from homicide in the United States doubled in the past four decades,
with most of the increase having occurred during the 1960s and early
1970s. Poisson regression models confirmed that the rise of homicide
mortality in both men and women was largely attributable to a
significant period effect between 1960 and 1974. No discernible cohort
patterns were found among women. However, homicide rates for recent
male birth cohorts appeared to peak at younger ages and at higher
levels. A significant increase in homicide mortality risk beginning
with males born around 1965 was found.... The hike of homicide
mortality during 1985 and 1994 was explained by this cohort effect.
Increased prevalence of substance abuse and availability of firearms
are two likely factors underlying this disturbing cohort
pattern."
Correspondence: G. Li, Johns Hopkins
University School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, 600
North Wolfe Street, Marburg B194A, Baltimore, MD 21287. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40395 Shemeikka, Riikka.
HIV/AIDS: the major demographic challenge of Namibia. Yearbook
of Population Research in Finland, Vol. 35, 1998-1999. 65-81 pp.
Helsinki, Finland. In Eng.
"In Namibia, as in many other
countries in Southern Africa, the prevalence of HIV/AIDS has been
growing rapidly during the 1990s.... Multi-state population projections
presented here include information on educational level and HIV/AIDS
status of the population.... The results show that HIV/AIDS will have a
significant effect on future population size and age structure. In case
the current development continues, the population of Namibia will be
over 836,000 smaller in 2026 than without HIV/AIDS. There will also be
a remarkable impact on the age structure of the
population."
Correspondence: R. Shemeikka,
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Schlossplatz 1,
2361 Laxenburg, Austria. E-mail: info@iiasa.ac.at. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40396 Shkolnikov, Vladimir; McKee, Martin;
Leon, David; Chenet, Laurent. Why is the death rate from
lung cancer falling in the Russian Federation? European Journal of
Epidemiology, Vol. 15, No. 3, Mar 1999. 203-6 pp. Stuttgart, Germany.
In Eng.
"Age standardised death rates (European standard
population) from lung cancer in the Russian Federation, have been
rising since at least 1965, levelled out in the late 1980s and have
subsequently decreased. The reasons for this decline are not apparent.
This study seeks to identify the reasons for the decline in mortality
from lung cancer in the Russian Federation in the 1990s. Changes in
age-specific mortality from lung cancer...are described and age-cohort
analysis, based on age-specific death rates for lung cancer is
undertaken for the period 1965 to 1995.... The present downward trend
in death rates from lung cancer in the Russian Federation is partly due
to a cohort effect and it is expected that this will soon reverse, with
a second peak occurring in about 2003."
Correspondence:
M. McKee, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, European
Centre on Health of Societies in Transition, Keppel Street, London WC1E
7HT, England. E-mail: M.McKee@lshtm.ac.uk. Location: Princeton
University Library (SPR).
65:40397 Shohat, Tamy; Harari, Gil; Green,
Manfred S. Mortality from infectious diseases in Israel,
1979-1992, based on revised ICD-9 codes: implications for international
comparisons. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 89, No. 12,
Dec 1999. 1,855-7 pp. Washington, D.C. In Eng.
"This study
examined trends in infectious disease mortality rates in Israel between
1979 and 1992, using a traditional and a revised set of International
Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes....
Age-adjusted infectious disease mortality rates based on the revised
ICD-9 codes were 3 times higher than those based on traditional codes.
Between 1979 and 1992, age-adjusted mortality rates declined more under
the revised method than under the traditional method (20% vs. 1.7%)....
The revised set of ICD-9 codes allows a more comprehensive view of the
burden of infectious diseases on public
health."
Correspondence: T. Shohat, Israel Center for
Disease Control, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Gertner Institute, Tel
Hashomer 52621, Israel. E-mail: shohat@trendline.co.il. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40398 Smil, Vaclav. China's
great famine: 40 years later. British Medical Journal, Vol. 319,
No. 7225, Dec 18-25, 1999. 1,619-21 pp. London, England. In Eng.
The famine that occurred in China in 1959-1961 is examined. The
author notes that, although the exact figures may never be recovered,
the best available demographic reconstructions indicate that about 30
million people died because of the famine. "Although drought was a
contributory factor, this was largely a manmade catastrophe for which
Mao Zedong bears the greatest responsibility.... Two generations later
China is yet to openly examine the causes and consequences of the
famine."
Correspondence: V. Smil, University of
Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3T 2N2, Canada. E-mail:
vsmil@cc.umanitoba.ca. Location: Princeton University Library
(SZ).
65:40399 Snow, R. W.; Craig, M.; Deichmann,
U.; Marsh, K. Estimating mortality, morbidity and
disability due to malaria among Africa's non-pregnant population.
Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Vol. 77, No. 8, 1999. 624-40
pp. Geneva, Switzerland. In Eng. with sum. in Fre; Spa.
The authors
discuss the contribution of malaria to mortality, morbidity, and
disability in Africa. "We have taken an empirical approach to
defining the limits of Plasmodium falciparum transmission across the
continent and interpolated the distributions of projected populations
in 1995. By combining a review of the literature on malaria in Africa
and models of acquired functional immunity, we have estimated the
age-structured rates of the fatal, morbid and disabling sequelae
following exposure to malaria infection under different epidemiological
conditions."
Correspondence: R. W. Snow, Kenya Medical
Research Institute (KEMRI)/Wellcome Trust, Collaborative Programme,
P.O. Box 43460, Nairobi, Kenya. E-mail: bobsnow@wtrl.or.ke.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40400 Stover, John; Way, Peter.
Projecting the impact of AIDS on mortality. AIDS, Vol. 12,
Suppl., 1998. 29-39 pp. London, England. In Eng.
The authors aim
"to illustrate the magnitude of the impact of AIDS on projections
of mortality, to explain the reasons for the differences in projections
by major international organizations and to provide a simple approach
to estimating the impact of AIDS on life expectancy.... By 2005 the
population of the most severely affected countries in Africa will be
13-59 million less than it would have been without AIDS. Life
expectancy may decline by as much as 27% in these
countries."
Correspondence: J. Stover, Futures Group
International, 80 Glastonbury Boulevard, Glastonbury, CT 06033.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40401 Sweanor, David T. Policy
options to reduce tobacco-caused mortality. Journal of Addictive
Diseases, Vol. 18, No. 3, 1999. 1-11 pp. Binghamton, New York. In Eng.
"This article reviews the existing legislation surrounding
tobacco and nicotine, the politics of nicotine delivery, and current
scientific knowledge surrounding nicotine, and assesses the various
policy options to minimize tobacco-related harm. Segmentation of the
nicotine market, according to different smokers' needs, and research
and philosophical issues are also considered." The geographical
focus is on developed countries.
Correspondence: D. T.
Sweanor, Smoking and Health Action Foundation, Suite 1903, 130 Albert
Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5G4, Canada. E-mail: nsraot@netcom.ca.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40402 Tsugane, Shoichiro; Fahey, Michael
T.; Sasaki, Satoshi; Baba, Shunroku. Alcohol consumption
and all-cause and cancer mortality among middle-aged Japanese men:
seven-year follow-up of the JPHC study cohort I. American Journal
of Epidemiology, Vol. 150, No. 11, Dec 1, 1999. 1,201-12 pp. Baltimore,
Maryland. In Eng.
The relationship between alcohol consumption and
mortality in Japan is examined using data from the Japan Public Health
Center prospective study on cancer and cardiovascular disease.
"After excluding subjects with self-reported serious diseases at
baseline, 19,231 men aged 40-59 years who reported their alcohol intake
were followed from 1990 through 1996, and 548 deaths were documented.
The association between all-cause mortality and alcohol consumption was
J-shaped. The lowest risk was observed for men who consumed 1-149
g/week...while the highest risk was seen for men who consumed [over]
450g/week.... The association did not change after excluding deaths
that occurred in the first 2 years of follow-up. However, the
association was modified by smoking, and beneficial effects of moderate
drinking were largely limited to nonsmokers. The risk of cancer death
showed a similar trend but increased more in heavy drinkers.... The
authors conclude that moderate alcohol consumption was associated with
the lowest risks of all-cause and cancer mortality, especially among
non-smokers."
Correspondence: S. Tsugane, National
Cancer Center Research Institute East, Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Division, 6-5-1 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277, Japan. Location:
Princeton University Library (SZ).
65:40403 United States. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention [CDC] (Atlanta, Georgia). Decline
in deaths from heart disease and stroke--United States, 1900-1999.
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 48, No. 30, Aug 6, 1999.
649-56 pp. Atlanta, Georgia. In Eng.
"Since 1950, age-adjusted
[U.S.] death rates from cardiovascular disease (CVD) have declined 60%,
representing one of the most important public health achievements of
the 20th century. This report summarizes the temporal trends in CVD,
advances in the understanding of risk factors for CVD, development of
prevention interventions to reduce these risks, and improvements in
therapy for persons who develop CVD."
Correspondence:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road,
Atlanta, GA 30333. Location: Princeton University Library
(SPR).
65:40404 United States. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention [CDC] (Atlanta, Georgia).
State-specific maternal mortality among black and white
women--United States, 1987-1996. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly
Report, Vol. 48, No. 23, Jun 18, 1999. 492-6 pp. Atlanta, Georgia. In
Eng.
"One of the national health objectives for 2000 is to
reduce the overall [U.S.] maternal mortality ratio [MMR]...to no more
than 3.3...; however, during 1982-1996, the MMR remained at
approximately 7.5.... This report presents state-specific MMRs for
1987-1996, focusing on persistent disparities in maternal mortality
between black and white women. The findings indicate that in every
state where MMRs could be reliably calculated, black women were more
likely than white women to die from complications of pregnancy and that
the 2000 objective will not be met; however, for white women, it has
been met in three states."
Correspondence: Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30333.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40405 Wasserman, D; Värnik,
A. Reliability of statistics on violent death and suicide
in the former USSR, 1970-1990. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica,
Vol. 98, No. Suppl. 394, 1998. 34-41 pp. Copenhagen, Denmark. In Eng.
"The stability of the relationship between trends of violent
deaths as a whole, suicides and death from undetermined causes was
assessed by quantitative methods for the whole former USSR in the years
1970-1990 and for each of the 15 republics in the former USSR for the
years 1984-1990. Semi-structured interviews during 1989-1996 were
performed with 12 professionals involved in the diagnosis and coding of
causes of death in the Baltic states and Russia. The quantitative
analyses showed that mortality data were reliable for the Slavic
(Russia, the Ukraine and Belarus) and Baltic (Estonia, Latvia and
Lithuania) republics, and also for Kazakhstan, Kirgizia and Moldova.
The Central Asian and Caucasian republics showed greater variation in
trends and ratios, indicating a need for further investigations of the
reliability of suicide statistics in these
regions."
Correspondence: D. Wasserman, Swedish
National and Stockholm County Council Centre for Suicide Research and
Prevention, Box 230, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. Location:
Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40406 White, Kevin M.
Cardiovascular and tuberculosis mortality: the contrasting effects
of changes in two causes of death. Population and Development
Review, Vol. 25, No. 2, Jun 1999. 289-302, 406, 408 pp. New York, New
York. In Eng. with sum. in Fre; Spa.
"Tuberculosis was the
largest source of deaths among younger adults, and cardiovascular
disease among older adults, in the America of 1900.... This article,
building on previous work by White and Preston, shows the results of
increased survival from these two causes on the U.S. population
structure.... Improvements in cardiovascular mortality and tuberculosis
produce some seemingly illogical contrasts. More people are alive today
because of the decrease in tuberculosis. Yet more deaths from
cardiovascular disease have been prevented, and cardiovascular
improvements have raised life expectancy
more."
Correspondence: K. M. White, University of
Pennsylvania, Population Studies Center, 3718 Locust Walk,
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6298. Location: Princeton University
Library (SPR).
65:40407 Wilson, Deborah; Bhopal,
Raj. Impact of infection on mortality and hospitalization
in the North East of England. Journal of Public Health Medicine,
Vol. 20, No. 4, Dec 1998. 386-95 pp. Oxford, England. In Eng.
The
case is made that current methods of presenting data on mortality and
hospitalization based on codes from Chapter 1 of the International
Classification of Diseases (ICD) conceal the importance of infection
and other microbial diseases. Data are from the former Northern
Regional Health Authority in England for the periods 1979-1983 and
1989-1993. The authors conclude that "the usual method of
presenting data coded by ICD-9 chapters greatly understates the
contribution of infection to morbidity and mortality and may mislead
policy makers assessing the priority to be given to
infections."
Correspondence: R. Bhopal, University of
Newcastle upon Tyne, School of Medicine, Department of Epidemiology and
Public Health, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, England.
Location: Princeton University Library (SPR).
65:40408 Wintemute, Garen J.; Parham, Carrie
A.; Beaumont, James J.; Wright, Mona; Drake, Christiana.
Mortality among recent purchasers of handguns. New England
Journal of Medicine, Vol. 341, No. 21, Nov 18, 1999. 1,583-9 pp.
Boston, Massachusetts. In Eng.
"We conducted a
population-based cohort study to compare mortality among 238,292
persons who purchased a handgun in California in 1991 with that in the
general adult population of the state." Data are from the State
Department of Justice roster of all persons who purchased handguns in
that year. "The purchase of a handgun is associated with a
substantial increase in the risk of suicide by firearm and by any
method. The increase in the risk of suicide by firearm is apparent
within a week after the purchase of a handgun and persists for at least
six years."
Correspondence: G. J. Wintemute,
University of California at Davis, Medical Center, Violence Prevention
Research Program, 2315 Stockton Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95817.
Location: Princeton University Library (SZ).
