[Mortality spatial patterns and socioeconomic differences in the city of Rio de Janeiro]

Health situation analysis has been used to understand complex health processes and to contribute to decision-making in public policies. This paper analyzes the spatial relationship between mortality patterns in the city of Rio de Janeiro (1996-1998) and socioeconomic profiles of neighborhoods. Mortality data were collected from the Municipal Health Department and population data were obtained from the National Census Bureau (IBGE) (1991 and 1996). Neighborhoods were aggregated through the K-means cluster method into 4 homogeneous socioeconomic groups, and the mortality indicators distribution was analyzed by different strata. General mortality, circulatory disease mortality, mortality from poorly defined causes, and mortality from violent causes all displayed large differences among socioeconomic groups. The spatial pattern of the socioeconomic strata allowed the identification of different living conditions, which involved specific mortality patterns. Higher socioeconomic strata presented low mortality figures for all causes.