Caribbean morality: 10 years 1980-1990

ABSTRACT

A review of underlying causes of death, as gleaned from the death certificate data of CAREC's member countries, revealed interesting insights into the changes in the mortality experience of Caribbean people during the past decade. Notwithstanding the ageing of the sub-regional population, crude mortality rates have declined from 765.0 per 100 000 population in 1980 to 674.0 in 1990. Specifically, infant mortality rates declined from 28.6 per 1 000 livebirths to 18.8 in 1990. Improved living conditions, better sanitation and effective programmes of immunization, oral rehydration and maternal and child health have all influenced mortality due to communicable diseases, especially diarrhoeal disease, and perinatal conditions. The appearance of nutrition-related mortality in children aged under 5-years is cause for concern, as Governments implement economic policies. Of concern also is the fact that in 1990 AIDS became one of the ten leading causes of death in males aged 25-44 years. Chronic diseases continued to play a major role in the health of the Caribbean people, with little change in mortality due to cerebrovascular and ischaemic heart disease and significant increase in rates due to diabetes in persons aged 54-64 years, from 79.6 deaths per 100 000 population in 1980 to 153.5 in 1990. Also increasing significantly were mortality rates due to injuries. While fatal motor vehicle injury rates fell from 17.9 in 1980 to 10.0 in 1990, homicide and suicide rates quadrupled in 25-44-year-old males, from 8.6 and 9.6 to 29.7 and 31.9, respectively. Mortality from neoplasm, especially of the prostate, breast and cervix, was also notable (AU)