Posted 16/10/2019 by Joanne Simon-Davies
Recently the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released
the 2018 Causes of Death (cat
no. 3303.0) report which provided detailed information on the number and
nature of deaths in Australia in 2018.
According to the ABS report:
In 2018, there were 158,493 registered deaths in Australia
and the number one cause was Ischaemic heart disease with 17,533 deaths (11 per
cent of all deaths). Even though the leading cause, the age-standardised death
rate from Ischaemic heart disease has decreased by 22.4 per cent since 2009, consistent
with declines in heart disease mortality observed now for more than 50 years.
Dementia (including Alzheimer's disease), remained the
second leading cause of death. Deaths due to dementia have increased by 68.6
per cent since 2009 (from 8,280 to 13,963).
Cerebrovascular diseases (strokes etc.), Cancer of the
trachea, bronchus and lung and Chronic lower respiratory diseases rounded out
the top five leading causes of death.
The top five leading causes of death accounted for more than
one-third of all registered deaths (37 per cent).
Influenza and pneumonia was the 12th leading cause of death.
According to the ABS, the number of influenza deaths is strongly linked to the
severity of flu seasons and this can drive changes in ranking for this cause
group.
Intentional self-harm was the 14th leading cause of death
and has the lowest median age at death among the top 20 leading causes, at 44.4
years of age.
Table 1: top 20 leading causes of death, 2009 and 2018
| Cause of death (Name and ICD-10 code) |
2009 |
2018 |
Median age
(2018) years |
| No. |
Rank |
No. |
Rank |
| Ischaemic heart diseases
(I20-I25) |
22,587 |
1 |
17,533 |
1 |
84.7 |
| Dementia, including
Alzheimer disease (F01, F03, G30) |
8,280 |
3 |
13,963 |
2 |
89.0 |
| Cerebrovascular diseases
(I60-I69) |
11,216 |
2 |
9,972 |
3 |
86.2 |
| Malignant neoplasm of
trachea, bronchus and lung (C33, C34) |
7,786 |
4 |
8,586 |
4 |
73.6 |
| Chronic lower respiratory
diseases (J40-J47) |
5,984 |
5 |
7,889 |
5 |
80.9 |
| Malignant neoplasm of
colon, sigmoid, rectum and anus (C18-C21, C26.0) |
5,244 |
6 |
5,420 |
6 |
77.0 |
| Diabetes (E10-E14) |
4,176 |
7 |
4,656 |
7 |
81.4 |
| Malignant neoplasms of
lymphoid, haematopoietic and related tissue (C81-C96) |
3,811 |
8 |
4,612 |
8 |
78.2 |
| Diseases of the urinary
system (N00-N39) |
3,315 |
9 |
3,384 |
9 |
86.8 |
| Malignant neoplasm of
prostate (C61) |
3,111 |
11 |
3,264 |
10 |
82.6 |
| Heart failure and
complications and ill-defined heart disease (I50-I51) |
3,219 |
10 |
3,192 |
11 |
88.5 |
| Influenza and pneumonia
(J09-J18) |
1,790 |
17 |
3,102 |
12 |
89.3 |
| Malignant neoplasm of
pancreas (C25) |
2,204 |
14 |
3,077 |
13 |
74.9 |
| Intentional self-harm
(X60-X84, Y87.0) |
2,337 |
13 |
3,046 |
14 |
44.4 |
| Malignant neoplasms of
breast (C50) |
2,799 |
12 |
3,034 |
15 |
71.7 |
| Accidental falls (W00-W19) |
1,450 |
21 |
2,952 |
16 |
87.3 |
| Cardiac arrhythmias
(I47-I49) |
1,552 |
19 |
2,442 |
17 |
88.9 |
| Hypertensive diseases
(I10-I15) |
1,845 |
15 |
2,136 |
18 |
88.2 |
| Malignant neoplasm of liver
and intrahepatic bile ducts (C22) |
1,328 |
22 |
2,104 |
19 |
71.9 |
| Melanoma and other
malignant neoplasms of skin (C43-C44) |
1,837 |
16 |
2,094 |
20 |
77.5 |
In 2018, there were 82,320 male deaths and 76,173 female
deaths. Table 2 shows the top 20 causes of death for males and females. The top
five causes are the same for both males and females, although the ranking of
those causes differs. For men the leading cause of death was Ischaemic heart
disease with 10,269 deaths (ranked 2nd for women), for women it was Dementia
with 8,973 (ranked 3rd for men). For external causes such as accidental,
assaults and suicide; Suicide was ranked 10th for men (not in the top 20 for
women) whilst Accidental falls were the highest ranked for females (14th).
Table 2: top 20 leading causes of death by sex, 2018
| Cause of death |
Male |
Cause of death |
Female |
| No. |
Rank |
No. |
Rank |
| Ischaemic heart diseases |
10,269 |
1 |
Dementia, including Alzheimer disease |
8,973 |
1 |
| Malignant neoplasm of trachea, bronchus & lung |
5,000 |
2 |
Ischaemic heart diseases |
7,264 |
2 |
| Dementia, including Alzheimer disease |
4,990 |
3 |
Cerebrovascular diseases |
5,808 |
3 |
| Cerebrovascular diseases |
4,164 |
4 |
Chronic lower respiratory diseases |
3,839 |
4 |
| Chronic lower respiratory diseases |
4,050 |
5 |
Malignant neoplasm of trachea, bronchus and lung |
3,586 |
5 |
| Malignant neoplasm of prostate |
3,264 |
6 |
Malignant neoplasms of breast |
2,999 |
6 |
| Malignant neoplasm of colon, sigmoid, rectum & anus |
2,905 |
7 |
Malignant neoplasm of colon, sigmoid, rectum and anus |
2,515 |
7 |
| Malignant neoplasms of lymphoid, haematopoietic & related tissue |
2,705 |
8 |
Diabetes |
2,110 |
8 |
| Diabetes |
2,546 |
9 |
Malignant neoplasms of lymphoid, haematopoietic and related tissue |
1,907 |
9 |
| Intentional self-harm |
2,320 |
10 |
Diseases of the urinary system |
1,859 |
10 |
| Malignant neoplasm of pancreas |
1,596 |
11 |
Heart failure and complications and ill-defined heart disease |
1,795 |
11 |
| Diseases of the urinary system |
1,525 |
12 |
Influenza and pneumonia |
1,676 |
12 |
| Accidental falls |
1,428 |
13 |
Cardiac arrhythmias |
1,525 |
13 |
| Influenza and pneumonia |
1,426 |
14 |
Accidental falls |
1,524 |
14 |
| Melanoma and other malignant neoplasms of skin |
1,416 |
15 |
Malignant neoplasm of pancreas |
1,481 |
15 |
| Malignant neoplasm of liver & intrahepatic bile ducts |
1,414 |
16 |
Hypertensive diseases |
1,336 |
16 |
| Heart failure and complications & ill-defined heart disease |
1,397 |
17 |
Malignant neoplasm of ovary |
968 |
17 |
| Cirrhosis and other diseases of liver |
1,248 |
18 |
Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue |
839 |
18 |
| Parkinson's disease |
1,172 |
19 |
Nonrheumatic valve disorders |
823 |
19 |
| Malignant neoplasm of oesophagus |
987 |
20 |
Septicaemia |
757 |
20 |
Data by Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander status is available for New South Wales, Queensland,
South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory; Victoria,
Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory have been excluded due to concerns
by the ABS regarding the accuracy of the data. On that basis, in 2018 there
were 3,218 deaths of
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia.
The leading cause of death among Indigenous persons was
Ischaemic heart disease, as it is with the total Australian population; however
the rate per 100,000 was 117.3 (154.0 in 2009) compared to 58.6 for
non-Indigenous persons.
The second leading cause of Indigenous death was Diabetes
with a rate of 75.1 per 100,000 compared to 15.2 per 100,000 for non-Indigenous
people (Diabetes is ranked 7th for the total population).
For Indigenous males, suicide was ranked 2nd compared to 10th
for non-Indigenous males. For Indigenous males, the rate has been increasing;
25.8 per 100,000 in 2009, 33.7 in 2013 and reached 38.1 per 100,000 in 2018 (compared
to 19.2 for non-Indigenous males). For Indigenous women, suicide was ranked 7th
compared to 23rd for non-Indigenous women.
Table 3: top 20 leading causes of death by Indigenous and
non-Indigenous status, 2018
| Cause of death |
Indigenous |
non-Indigenous |
| No. |
Rank |
Rate |
No. |
Rank |
Rate |
| All causes of death |
3,218 |
.. |
927.1 |
109,753 |
.. |
539.3 |
|
| Ischaemic heart diseases |
390 |
1 |
117.3 |
8,973 |
1 |
58.6 |
| Diabetes |
232 |
2 |
72.1 |
7,264 |
8 |
15.2 |
| Chronic lower respiratory diseases |
225 |
3 |
77.3 |
5,808 |
5 |
26.0 |
| Malignant neoplasm of trachea, bronchus
and lung |
204 |
4 |
58.5 |
3,839 |
4 |
28.6 |
| Intentional self-harm |
169 |
5 |
24.1 |
3,586 |
12 |
12.4 |
| Dementia, including Alzheimer disease |
108 |
6 |
60.3 |
2,999 |
2 |
47.6 |
| Cirrhosis and other diseases of liver |
108 |
6 |
23.2 |
2,515 |
22 |
6.7 |
| Cerebrovascular diseases |
105 |
8 |
44.4 |
2,110 |
3 |
34.0 |
| Land transport accidents |
84 |
9 |
12.9 |
1,907 |
30 |
5.0 |
| Accidental poisoning |
78 |
10 |
13.6 |
1,859 |
32 |
5.1 |
| Symptoms, signs and ill-defined
conditions |
76 |
11 |
17.2 |
1,795 |
18 |
7.9 |
| Malignant neoplasm of colon, sigmoid,
rectum & anus |
71 |
12 |
23.0 |
1,676 |
6 |
18.6 |
| Diseases of the urinary system |
66 |
13 |
24.9 |
1,525 |
10 |
11.0 |
| Malignant neoplasm of liver &
intrahepatic bile ducts |
58 |
14 |
15.2 |
1,524 |
21 |
6.9 |
| Certain conditions originating in the
perinatal period |
57 |
15 |
4.5 |
1,481 |
43 |
2.1 |
| Malignant neoplasm of pancreas |
53 |
16 |
14.8 |
1,336 |
11 |
10.2 |
| Influenza and pneumonia |
47 |
17 |
14.9 |
968 |
14 |
10.2 |
| Malignant neoplasms of breast |
40 |
18 |
12.8 |
839 |
15 |
10.3 |
| Malignant neoplasms of lymphoid,
haematopoietic & related tissue |
40 |
18 |
9.3 |
823 |
7 |
15.6 |
| Heart failure and complications and
ill-defined heart disease |
32 |
20 |
10.3 |
757 |
13 |
10.2 |
Note: Rates presented in this
table have been calculated using Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
population estimates and projections based on the 2016 Census, and are per
100,000 population.
In 2018 there were 3,046 registered deaths of people who
died due to intentional self-harm (suicide). The standardised death rate was
12.1 deaths per 100,000 people. Death rates recorded over the five years from
2014 to 2018 have been between 11.9 (2016) and 12.9 (2015) deaths per 100,000
people.
The chart below uses customised data from the ABS to show the
crude rate of suicide (the number of deaths registered during the reference
year per 100,000 estimated resident population at 30 June) by current Commonwealth
Electoral Divisions. The Division of Flynn in Queensland recorded the highest
rate of suicide in 2018 with 26.7 per 100,000 population (compared to 9.2 in
2003, 15 years prior). Other electorates also recorded high suicide rates: Lingiari
in the NT (22.0), O’Connor and Hasluck in WA (21.0 and 20.9) and in Qld;
Rankin, Kennedy, Leichhardt and Hinkler (20.9, 20.9, 20.3 and 20.0 rate per
100,000 population).
Those with the lowest rates included: Berowra in NSW (3.1
per 100,000), Calwell, Bruce and Hotham in Vic (4.3, 4.5 and 4.9) and Fowler
and Parramatta in NSW (both with 5.1).
Chart 1: intentional self-harm (suicide deaths) rates per
100,000 by top 20 Commonwealth Electoral Divisions, 2003 and 2018
Clients of the Parliamentary Library can request assistance to
interpret the statistics, obtain suicide data by Commonwealth Electoral Divisions
from 2003 to 2018 or to find other relevant data.
Source:
Australian Bureau of Statistics, Causes
of Death, Australia, 2018, cat no. 3303.0, Customised data, ABS, 2019
Footnote:
- Causes of death data for 2018 are preliminary and subject to a
revisions process.
- Cells with small values have been randomly adjusted to
protect the confidentiality of individuals. As a result, some totals will not
equal the sum of their components. Cells with a zero value have not been
affected by confidentialisation.