Mortalidad prematura atribuible al alcohol en las comunidades autónomas

[Premature death and potential years of life lost due to alcohol consumption in Spain and the different autonomous communities in 2004]

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to analyse premature deaths due to alcohol consumption in 2004 in Spain and its different Autonomous Communities.

DESIGN

Using data on deaths that can be attributed to alcohol consumption in 2004 for Spain and its different Autonomous Communities, the Potential Years of Life Lost (PYLL) were calculated up to the age of 70 for each diagnostic category, by sex and 5-year age groups.

SETTING

Spain: 17 Autonomous Communities, Ceuta and Melilla.

PARTICIPANTS

Data on deaths that can be attributed to alcohol consumption in 2004 for Spain and its different Autonomous Communities.

MEASUREMENTS

The number of PYLL, the percentage of PYLL, and average PYLL.

RESULTS

During 2004, 118,411 PYLL were lost, 4 times higher in males than in females, the average PYLL per death being attributable to alcohol was 22.6 years (ranging from 34.7 in Ceuta and 20.2 in Asturias). Acute causes (68% of the PYLL), and in particular unintentional accidents (47.9 of the PYLL), were the main causes that contributed to premature death related to alcohol consumption in Spain and in each of Spanish Autonomous Communities.

CONCLUSIONS

The estimation of the PYLL shows the great impact that alcohol consumption has on the premature death rate in Spain ant the Spanish Autonomous Communities. Given that alcohol consumption is an avoidable cause of death, the adoption of preventive measures aimed at reducing consumption, as well as the early detection and treatment of possible alcohol related problems is vital.

Evolución de la mortalidad y de los años de vida perdidos prematuramente relacionados con el consumo de alcohol en las Islas Canarias (1980-1998)

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this article was to describe death rates and years of life lost prematurely (YLLP) in relation to alcohol consumption in the Canary Islands. The study covered the period between 1980 and 1998.

METHODS

Deaths from 1980 to 1998 were classified by age, sex, and cause using data obtained from the National Institute of Statistics (Natural Changes in the Population). The number of alcohol-related deaths was calculated by year, sex, and age group using the attributable population fraction as proposed by the Centers for Disease Control (USA). The YLLP attributed to alcohol consumption were calculated for each cause of death by multiplying deaths by the attributable population fraction in 5-yearly age groups for both sexes (average span of five years), up to the age of 65 years.

RESULTS

Between 1980 and 1998, the number of alcohol-related deaths was 12,614, averaging 6.4% per year and with a male-to-female ratio of approximately 2:1. The main causes of death and YLLP in both men and women were malignant neoplasms, diseases of the digestive system, and alcohol-related accidents, although accidents were by far the main cause producing 50.6% of alcohol-related YLLP in men and 55.5% in women. Over the study period, the incidence of cirrhosis of the liver and that of other chronic liver diseases (CIE 571) decreased in men whilst remaining stable in women.

CONCLUSIONS

The finding that the percentage of alcohol-related deaths and cirrhosis of the liver remained high in the Islas Canarias between 1980 and 1998 highlights the need for educational strategies on the effects of alcohol, together with policies designed to reduce its consumption, particularly among the young.