AEGiS-WSJ: AIDS Study Shows Drop Of 26% in Mortality Rate

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1997. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

AIDS Study Shows Drop Of 26% in Mortality Rate

Wall Street Journal - September 12, 1997

ATLANTA -- The decline in the AIDS mortality rate has reached the point where the illness is no longer the leading cause of death among Americans age 25 to 44, according to a new federal study.

In its annual profile of births and deaths in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the number of deaths from infection linked to the AIDS virus dropped 26% between 1995 and 1996, to 11.6 deaths per 100,000 people from 15.6 deaths.

The statistics confirm an encouraging trend reported in July, when the CDC said AIDS deaths had dropped for the first time since 1981. Deaths associated with the AIDS virus had increased by an average of 16% a year between 1987 and 1994, before leveling off in 1995.

Indeed, the illness now ranks second behind accidents (excluding motor-vehicle accidents and drowning) as the main cause of death for Americans aged 25 to 44, the new statistics show.

The CDC also reported other good news: Teen births declined for the fifth consecutive year; more women are seeking early prenatal care; and infant mortality dropped to a record low of 7.2 deaths per thousand live births.

Still, 7.4% of newborns in the U.S. had low birthweights in 1996, and murder and suicide remain the second and third major causes of death, respectively, among those age 15 to 24.

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