Perspectives in Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Changes in Premature Mortality -- United States, 1984-1985
Premature mortality in the United States, as measured in total
years of potential life lost (YPLL) before age 65, increased from
11,788,125 in 1984 to 11,844,475 in 1985, an increase of 0.5%.
This
is the second straight year with an increase in total YPLL; prior
to
this increase, there had been 3 years of gradual decline. However,
the rate of YPLL/1,000 persons has decreased every year since 1980.
In 1985, the rate decreased 0.3% from the 1984 level; this is
explained by an increase of 1.7 million in the number of persons
under
age 65 in the U.S. population from 1984 to 1985.
A major reason for the increase in total YPLL is the greater
number of deaths from the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
(AIDS).
The YPLL due to AIDS increased from 82,885 in 1984 to 152,595 in
1985;
this represented a rate increase of 82.4%.
Death due to AIDS became the 11th leading cause of YPLL in
1985;
in 1984, it was the 13th leading cause. The relative rankings of
the
remaining 12 leading causes of YPLL did not change. Unintentional
injuries, malignancies, and heart disease continue to be the three
leading causes of YPLL in the United States.
The rate of YPLL/1,000 persons increased for seven of the 13
leading causes. As with total YPLL, the most notable rate increase
was for AIDS. Other increases in the rate of YPLL occurred for
diabetes (6.4%), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (4.5%),
pneumonia and influenza (2.5%), heart disease (1.5%), congenital
anomalies (0.6%), and diseases of the liver and cirrhosis (0.3%).
Declines in the rate of YPLL were noted for prematurity (7.0%),
cerebrovascular diseases (5.8%), unintentional injuries (4.2%),
sudden
infant death syndrome (1.9%), suicide and homicide (1.5%), and
malignancies (0.3%) (Figure 2).
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