Supplementary memorandum from Professor
Danny Dorling, The University of Sheffield (RS 70)
In my testimony I offered to provide further
information on the most common cause of death of people in Britain
in case of inaccuracy in my recall. With several colleagues in
work in preparation for a new atlas of mortality by cause in Britain
we have been studying the major causes of death across this island
over the period 1981 to 2004 (inclusive). About one hundred causes
of death are being mapped including groupings of causes that are
hard to classify as one group. The source data for our analysis
has been provided by the General Register Office for Scotland
and from the Office for National Statistics (for those deaths
occurring in England and Wales). The data we are analysing does
not include Northern Ireland. We analyse by 20 age groups and
find:
MOST COMMON CAUSE OF DEATH OF PEOPLE DYING
IN BRITAIN BY AGE OVER THE PERIOD 1981 to 2004
| Age | Most death due to:
|
| 0 | Other conditions in the perinatal period
|
| 1-4 | Congenital malformations of heart
|
| 5-9 | Pedestrian and motor vehicle accidents
|
| 10-14 | Pedestrian and motor vehicle accidents
|
| 15-19 | Other motor vehicle accidents
|
| 20-24 | Other motor vehicle accidents
|
| 25-29 | Other motor vehicle accidents
|
| 30-34 | Other motor vehicle accidents
|
| 35-39 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 40-44 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 45-49 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 50-54 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 55-59 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 60-64 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 65-69 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 70-74 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 75-79 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 80-84 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 85-89 | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
| 90+ | Heart attack and chronic heart disease
|
Note: Motor vehicles (mostly cars) are the major killer
between ages 5 and 34 in this country. This is of child pedestrians
being killed in a collision with a motor vehicle between ages
5 and 14, and then through involvement in other motor vehicle
accidents, most often as drivers and passenger between the ages
of 15 and 34. It is possible that motor vehicles are a major factor
before age 5 given that most deaths due to congenital malformations
occur in the earlier years for those aged 1-4. Source:
Analysis by the author and colleagues of mortality records as
work in preparation for a national atlas of mortality according
to roughly one hundred key causes to be published by the Policy
Press in Autumn 2008. Definitions: "Other conditions
in the perinatal period"—over half of deaths in this
category are due to trauma around the time of birth or shortly
after, such as asphyxia and other respiratory distress. The deaths
come under cause-codings: ICD-9 codes: 760-779; ICD-10 codes:
G70.2, P00-P05, P07, P10-P11, P15, P20-P28, P29.0-P29.1, P29.8,
P35-P37, P39, P50, P52, P54, P59-P61, P70, P74, P76-P78, P83,
P90-P92, P94, P96, Q86.0. "Congenital Malformations of the
heart" include deaths due medical condition present at birth
ICD-9 codes: 745-747; ICD-10 codes: P29.3, Q20-Q28 "Pedestrian
and motor vehicle accidents" includes deaths to pedestrians
due to collision with a vehicle of some kind ICD-9 codes: E812.7,
E813.7, E814.7, E815.7, E816.7, E817.7, E818.7, E819.7, E821.7,
E822.7, E823.7, E824.7, E825.7, E826.0; ICD-10 codes: V01-V04,
V06, V09.0-V09.3; "Other motor vehicle accident death are
those deaths where the passenger or driver of the vehicle dies.
Pedestrian deaths and the deaths of cyclists are not included
here: ICD9: 810-812, 815-825 (excluding -.7's). Heart attack and
chronic heart disease: ICD9: 410-414 and 429.
|
