Preventable mortality in Missouri: excess deaths from nine chronic diseases, 1979-1991.

For the period 1979-1991, 54% of the 644,045 deaths in Missouri were attributed to nine chronic diseases--cancers of the breast, uterine cervix, lung, colon/rectum; coronary heart disease; stroke; diabetes; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; hepatic diseases/cirrhosis. Elimination of risk factors and screening have been shown to reduce the mortality caused by these diseases. To evaluate the range in excess mortality in the state, we calculated excess mortality by county and correlated these rates with three sociodemographic variables. Based on these analyses, an estimated 100,000 deaths may have been prevented through prevention and early detection activities.