Causes of death among adults in northern Ethiopia: evidence from verbal autopsy data in health and demographic surveillance system.

In countries where registration of vital events is lacking and the proportion of people who die at home without medical care is high, verbal autopsy is used to determine and estimate causes of death.We conducted 723 verbal autopsy interviews of adult (15 years of age and above) deaths from September 2009 to January 2013. Trained physicians interpreted the collected verbal autopsy data, and assigned causes of death according to the international classification of diseases (ICD-10). We did analysis of specific as well as broad causes of death (i.e. non-communicable diseases, communicable diseases and external causes of death) by sex and age using Stata version 11.1. We performed logistic regression to identify socio-demographic predictors using odds ratio with 95% confidence interval and a p-value of 0.05.Tuberculosis, cerebrovascular diseases and accidental falls were leading specific causes of death accounting for 15.9%, 7.3% and 3.9% of all deaths. Two hundred sixty three (36.4% [95% CI: 32.9, 39.9]), 252 (34.9% [95% CI: 31.4, 38.4]) and 89 (12.3% [95% CI: 10.1, 14.9]) deaths were due to non-communicable, communicable diseases, and external causes, respectively. Females had 1.5 times (AOR = 1.53 [95% CI: 1.10, 2.15]) higher odds of dying due to communicable diseases than males. The odds of dying due to external causes were 4 times higher among 15-49 years of age (AOR  = 4.02 [95% CI: 2.25, 7.18]) compared to older ages. Males also had 1.7 times (AOR = 1.70 [95% CI: 1.01, 2.85]) higher odds of dying due to external causes than females.Tuberculosis, cerebrovascular diseases and accidental falls were the top three causes of death among adults. Efforts to prevent tuberculosis and cerebrovascular diseases related deaths should be improved and safety efforts to reduce accidents should also receive attention

Socio-demographic characteristics of deceased adults in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).

<p>Socio-demographic characteristics of deceased adults in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).</p

Factors associated with communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases and external causes of adult deaths in northern Ethiopia, from September 2009 to March 2013 (n = 723).

<p>COD-Crude Odds Ratio, AOR-Adjusted Odds Ratio.</p><p>Factors associated with communicable diseases, non-communicable diseases and external causes of adult deaths in northern Ethiopia, from September 2009 to March 2013 (n = 723).</p

Causes of adult deaths by sex in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).

<p>Causes of adult deaths by sex in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).</p

Specific causes of adult deaths by sex in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).

<p>*-out of 77 reproductive age women (15–49 years), VA-Verbal Autopsy.</p><p>Specific causes of adult deaths by sex in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).</p

Specific causes of adult deaths by age in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).

<p>VA-Verbal Autopsy.</p><p>Specific causes of adult deaths by age in northern Ethiopia from September 2009 to January 2013 (n = 723).</p

Cause-specific childhood mortality in Africa and Asia : evidence from INDEPTH health and demographic surveillance system sites

Childhood mortality, particularly in the first 5 years of life, is a major global concern and the target of Millennium Development Goal 4. Although the majority of childhood deaths occur in Africa and Asia, these are also the regions where such deaths are least likely to be registered. The INDEPTH Network works to alleviate this problem by collating detailed individual data from defined Health and Demographic Surveillance sites. By registering deaths and carrying out verbal autopsies to determine cause of death across many such sites, using standardised methods, the Network seeks to generate population-based mortality statistics that are not otherwise available.; To present a description of cause-specific mortality rates and fractions over the first 15 years of life as documented by INDEPTH Network sites in sub-Saharan Africa and south-east Asia.; All childhood deaths at INDEPTH sites are routinely registered and followed up with verbal autopsy (VA) interviews. For this study, VA archives were transformed into the WHO 2012 VA standard format and processed using the InterVA-4 model to assign cause of death. Routine surveillance data also provided person-time denominators for mortality rates. Cause-specific mortality rates and cause-specific mortality fractions are presented according to WHO 2012 VA cause groups for neonatal, infant, 1-4 year and 5-14 year age groups.; A total of 28,751 childhood deaths were documented during 4,387,824 person-years over 18 sites. Infant mortality ranged from 11 to 78 per 1,000 live births, with under-5 mortality from 15 to 152 per 1,000 live births. Sites in Vietnam and Kenya accounted for the lowest and highest mortality rates reported.; Many children continue to die from relatively preventable causes, particularly in areas with high rates of malaria and HIV/AIDS. Neonatal mortality persists at relatively high, and perhaps sometimes under-documented, rates. External causes of death are a significant childhood problem in some settings