Abstract:

We retrospectively evaluated the death cases of our clinics between January 2001 and January 2004 to determine the rate and causes of mortality. Demographic characteristics and causes of death were obtained from the patients’s files and death report paper retrospectively. The documentation of the accuracy of death cause and the order of basic,intermediate and final causes of death as proposed by WHO were also checked. In the last 3 years,150 (% 5.7) of total 2629 patients died in our clinics.Of cases, 104 (% 69) were men and 46 (% 31) were women, the mean age was 60.4±15.3 (15-86 years). The mortality rate was highest in 2002 (% 7.6), (% 3.9 in 2001, % 7.6 in 2002 and % 5.7 in 2003). The cause of death was accurately documented in 99 (% 66) cases but classification of basic,intermediate and final causes of death were not documented.As classified according to basic and final causes of death,the basic causes of death were chronic cor pulmonale (% 31), lung cancer (% 19) and COPD (% 14); the final causes of death were chronic cor pulmonale (% 23), lung cancer (% 16) and respiratory failure (% 11). All the patients who had final death cause report as cardiopulmonary arrest had different basic death cause. As a conclusion, we think that the knowledge of rates and causes of mortality and the documentation of basic,intermediate and final causes of death proposed by WHO are necessary and useful for the epidemiological studies and mortality data.

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