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Introduction: Avoidable mortality is an important analysis in public health. This paper presents the analysis of avoidable mortality between 1997-2003 in Santander aiming to guide the health policies in the state. Methods: Descriptive, longitudinal and retrospective analysis of avoidable mortality in Santander 1997-2003 based on the mortality records of the National Department of Statisitcs and taking as reference the clasification of Taucher. Mortality rates for avoidability group, year and provice were calculated and the median rates were plotted in maps for each group. Sex and age specific rates and potentially lost years of life were calculated for 2003 data. Results: In Santander 35% of deaths were avoidable between 1997-2003. The groups with the highest median rates were: accidents, poisoning and violence (F), preventable diseases in infants (E) and preventable disease with early diagnosis or treatment (B). The general ratio man: woman was 2:1 but 4:1 in the group F. Carare-Opón and Soto Norte were the provinces with the highest burden of avoidable mortality. Conclusions: There is an inequity in the way how the avoidable mortality affects the population. The data suggest to review the quality of the promotion and prevention programms and to continue the action against violence in Santander. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Using the concept of avoidable mortality, international studies suggest that healthcare has been effective in reducing mortality. This paper provides an analysis of avoidable mortality in Australia and compares trends with those of Western Europe. Methods: Using unit-record mortality data, we calculated avoidable mortality rates in Australia for 1968-2001. We partitioned avoidable causes into three categories: those amenable to medical care; those mainly responsive to health policy; and ischaemic heart disease. We used Poisson regression to model the trends. We compared trends with those of nine European countries using published data. Results: Total avoidable death rates fell by 68% in females and 72% in males. The corresponding non-avoidable death rates fell by 35 and 33%. The annual declines in avoidable mortality rates were: 3.47% [95% confidence intervals (CI) 3.44-3.50%] in males and 3.89% (95% CI 3.86-3.91%) in females. For non-avoidable mortality rates, the annual declines were 1.09% (95% CI 1.05-1.13%) and 0.95% (95% CI 0.92-0.98%), respectively. In females, declines in death rates from causes amenable to medical care contributed 54% to the decline in avoidable mortality rates, ischaemic heart disease contributed 45%, and causes responsive to health policy intervention contributed 1%. In males, the corresponding contributions were 32, 57 and 11%. These rates, and the declines between 1980 and 1998, were comparable with selected European countries, with Australia's ranking improving over the period. Conclusion: Trends in avoidable mortality in Australia suggest that the Australian healthcare system has been effective in improving population health. Australia's experience compares favourably with that of Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the changes in avoidable mortality in Lithuania in 1991–1999 compared with 1970–1990. Causes of death were disaggregated into causes most amenable to treatment and those amenable to prevention. Trends in age­standardised death rates were calculated. In 1970–1990, avoidable causes of death accounted for 26.3% of all deaths. By 1991–1999 this figure had decreased slightly to 24.6%. At the same time, age­standardised death rates from avoidable causes increased by 8%, from 118.1 per 100,000 in 1970–1990 to 127.9 in 1991–1999. Avoidable mortality among men was considerably higher than for women in both periods. There was considerable fluctuation in both treatable and preventable mortality during the 1990s, reflecting diversity in trends in different causes of death. Increases occurred in death rates from tuberculosis, cervical cancer and liver cirrhosis and, immediately after independence, also in hypertensive and cerebrovascular diseases and, among men, lung cancer, followed by subsequent declines. Deaths from chronic rheumatic heart disease, asthma and other respiratory diseases, appendicitis, abdominal hernia, cholelithiasis and maternal mortality consistently declined. In conclusion, avoidable mortality declined as a proportion of total mortality in Lithuania during 1991–1999 compared with 1970–1990. This reflected the combined impact of an initial rise in death rates from treatable and, to a lesser extent, preventable causes, followed by subsequent declines. While this indicates some success in the development of medical care, it emphasises the need for more effective public health policies directed at the major determinants of health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]