Mortality among teenagers aged 12-19 years: United States, 1999-2006

Data from the National Vital Statistics System-Mortality. An average of 16,375 teenagers 12-19 years died in the United States every year from 1999 to 2006. This is less than 1 percent of all deaths that occur every year in the United States. The five leading causes of death among teenagers are accidents (unintentional injuries), homicide, suicide, cancer, and heart disease. Accidents account for nearly one-half of all teenage deaths. As a category of accidents, motor vehicle fatality is the leading cause of death to teenagers, representing over one-third of all deaths. Among teenagers, non-Hispanic black males have the highest death rate (94.1 deaths per 100,000 population). Homicide is the leading cause of death for non-Hispanic black male teenagers. For all other groups, accident is the leading cause.