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Ministry of Health
Table, Causes of Death by Gender and Age

[Click here to download a Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet of the above table]

HIGHLIGHTS TO TABLE 21
  • There were 27,794 deaths in British Columbia in 1999, only 11 fewer deaths (27,805) than in 1998. More than one half of all deaths in 1999 (52.9%) were males (14,695 deaths), and 13,099 deaths were females. Over three quarters (78.6%) of all 1999 deaths were seniors (age 65 or older), and the oldest age group (80 years of age or more) accounted for more than four out of every ten deaths (44.3%).

  • The Age Standardized Mortality Rate (ASMR) for all causes of death in 1999 was 58.14 per 10,000 standard population. The 1999 ASMR for males was 73.53 and for females it was 46.11. The 1995-1999 life expectancy at birth (shown in Appendix 1) was 79.2 years for both genders combined; the life expectancy for men was 76.5 years compared to 82.0 years for women.

  • Diseases of the circulatory system were responsible for more than a third (35.9%) of all deaths in 1999 (9,975). It was the leading cause of death of the elderly aged 80 or older (5,632 deaths), and accounted for more than half (56.5%) of the deaths due to circulatory system diseases. The ASMR for circulatory system diseases was 20.18 per 10,000 standard population in 1999. For deaths due to sub-categories of circulatory system diseases, please refer to the Information Box, Deaths due to Circulatory System Diseases by Gender.

  • More than one in four deaths (27.7%) in 1999 was due to neoplasms, including cancers and non-malignant neoplasms (7,707 deaths). Malignant neoplasms were the leading cause of death in the 45-64 and 65-79 age groups. The total ASMR for neoplasms was 16.56 per 10,000 standard population. For deaths due to sub-categories of cancers, please refer to the Information Box, Deaths due to Cancers (Malignant Neoplasms) by Gender.

  • In 1999, one in nine deaths (11.2%) was due to diseases of the respiratory system (3,125). These deaths, including pneumonia/influenza and chronic lung disease, tend to occur in older age groups. In 1999, 92.2 % of deaths from respiratory system diseases were seniors (age 65 and over). The ASMR for respiratory system diseases was 6.28 per 10,000 standard population.

  • External causes, also referred to as accidents and violence, claimed 1,780 lives in 1999, of which seven out of every ten deaths (69.6%) were males. External causes claimed many young lives, in contrast to the older age profile of deaths from natural causes. Accidents and violence was the leading cause of death category in all age groups under 45 years of age, except for infants (under one year of age) where the most common cause of death was certain conditions originating in the perinatal period.