Global and regional mortality patterns by cause of death in 1980

Mortality attributable to major causes of death around 1980 has been estimated for different regions in the world. The World Health Organization's mortality data bank has been employed to derive the rates for the developed areas in the world whereas for the developing areas, cause-specific mortality has been estimated on the basis of total mortality using a linear regression method. For the cause grouping chosen, infectious and parasitic diseases claim one third of all deaths in the world. Although diseases of the circulatory system and neoplasms are the two most common causes of death in the developed countries, more than 50% of all deaths in the world due to these causes occur in the developing world. Mortality due to injury and poisoning is--contrary to that due to the other main causes of death--almost independent of the level of development of the area. The results are aimed to assist the information back-up for health policies concerning the developing world.