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Facts & Figures

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United States Mortality Statistics

According to a 2007 report from the Center for Disease Control: 

  • There were 2,423,712 total deaths in the United States in the year 2007
  • The highest percentage of deaths were heart related illness (25.4%), followed by cancer at 23.2%
  • Other causes:
    • Accidents (unintentional Injuries) (5.1%)
    • Alzheimer's Disease (3.1%)
    • There were 34,828 reports of suicide (1.4% of total deaths)
    • There were 18,361 total deaths by homicide in 2007 (0.8% of total deaths)
    • In 2007 a total of 38,371 people died of drug-induced causes (this includes numbers of deaths due to poisoning from medically prescribed and other drugs)
    • 23,199 people died of alcohol-induced causes in the United States.
  • West Virginia reported the highest death rate in 2007, with a rate of 25.2 percent above the national average
  • The state with the lowest death rate was Hawaii 
Infant Mortality 
  • A total of 29,138 deaths occurred in children under the age of 1
  • In 2007 the infant mortality rate in the United States was 6.75 per 1,000 live births
  • In 2010, the United States was ranked 178th in the world for infant mortality rates, with 6.14 deaths per 1,000 births
    • The country of Monaco is reported to have the lowest infant mortality rate in the world, with only 1.78 deaths per 1,000 live births
    • Angola has the highest infant mortality rate in the United States, with some 178,13 recored deaths per 1,000 live births. 
  • Leading causes of infant deaths (In the U.S.):
    • Congenital malformations
    • Disorders related to short gestation and low birth weights
    • Sudden Infant Death Syndrom (SIDS)
    • Maternal complications
    • Accidents (unintentional injuries)
    • Complications of the placenta, cord and/or membranes
    • Bacterial sepsis
    • Respiratory distress
Selected Causes of Death by Age in 2009 (From CDC 2009 Mortality Data) :

5-14 years:
  • 1,167 died in motor vehicle accidents
  • 350 died from homicides
  • 266 from suicides (intentional self-harm)
15-24 years:
  • 7,648 died in motor vehicle accidents
  • 4,820 died from homicides 
  • 4,341 died from suicides 
  • 202 from issues related to complications from pregnancy and childbirth
25-44 years:
  • 11,033 from motor vehicle accidents
  • 6,883 from homicides
  • 11,871 from suicides
  • 2,052 from influenza and pneumonia 
45-64 years:
  • 9,918 from motor vehicle accidents 
  • 14,192 from suicide 
  • 103,704 from diseases of the heart
65 and over
  • 479,046 from diseases of the heart
  • 78,058 from Alzheimer's Disease
  • 6,259 from motor vehicle accidents
For More Information:

Center for Youth Studies