A study of the mortality patterns of taxi drivers in Singapore

The mortality patterns of taxi drivers in Singapore were studied by examining the death certificates of a group of taxi drivers from 1984 to 1986. The drivers were all members of Singapore's largest transport co-operative, with a fleet of 6,377 taxis. This represents over 60% of all taxis in Singapore. One hundred deaths occurred among the taxi drivers during these 3 years. The age and sex standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) were 0.70 in 1984, 0.72 in 1985, and 0.98 in 1986. For the whole period, the age and sex standardised SMR was 0.80 (95% CL 0.65-0.97). Leading causes of death were neoplasms (42%), coronary heart disease (24%), and cerebrovascular disease (15%). Age and sex standardised cause specific SMRs were 1.22 (95% CL 0.88-1.65) for neoplasms, 0.78 (95% CL 0.50-1.16) for coronary heart disease, 1.51 (95% CL 0.84-2.49) for cerebrovascular disease, and 1.03 (95% CL 0.28-2.63) for suicides and homicides. Death from all other causes was significantly lower than the general population (SMR 0.32, 95% CL 0.18-0.53). As compared to the general population, taxi drivers in Singapore do not appear to have an excess mortality risk for cancers, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease or from all other causes of death. Their risk of violent death from homicide or suicide is low when compared to available reports from other countries.