MORTALITY PATTERNS AMONG ADULT HISPANICS - FINDINGS FROM THE NHIS, 1986 TO 1990

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to assess the mortality patt ern of the adult Hispanic population in the United States. Methods. Th is was a cohort study using data from the National Health Interview Su rvey from 1986 through 1990. Deaths were ascertained by matching to th e National Death Index through 1991. Results. This representative nati onal sample included 297640 non-Hispanic Whites, 53552 Blacks, and 272 39 Hispanics, all aged Is years or older at baseline. Different matchi ng criteria resulted in modest differential estimates of the number of deaths by ethnic group; these differences were quantitatively more im portant for Hispanics. Overall age standardized mortality was lower am ong Hispanics. A prominent age by race interaction was apparent. The H ispanic:White mortality ratio was 1.33, 0.92, and 0.76 among men aged 18 through 44, 45 through 64, and 65 and older, respectively. Among wo men in the same age groups the Hispanic:White mortality ratio was 1.22 , 0.75, and 0.70, respectively. Conclusions. Longitudinal cohorts prov ide an important source of health status information on Hispanics. The se results suggest that overall mortality is lower among Hispanics tha n among non-Hispanic Whites, especially in the oldest age group. Among younger and middle-aged persons, the mortality of Hispanics is simila r to or even higher than that of Whites.