[Causes and trends of mortality in a Spanish prison (1994-2009)]. / Causas y tendencia de la mortalidad en una prisión española (1994-2009).

BACKGROUND: There are a few mortality researches in prisons. To know this measure can to be important for take decisions of Public Health. The aim of the paper is to describe mortality and its trend in our prison. METHODS: This is a descriptive and retrospective study of the deaths between 01/01/1994 and 31/12/2009. Two periods of 8 years have been compared through exact test of Fisher in order to detect changes in causes of mortality. First of all, we made an indirect standardization of rates and compare mortality in our institution with other Spanish prisons. Through linear regression model we have settled in trends of mortality rates. RESULTS: Had 59 deaths, 58 in men with a median age 34.9 years old (28.7- 40.4). 64,4% were HIV+ . From 1994 to 2001 the main cause of mortality was VIH infection (48.6%) the second one was cardiovascular event (10.8%), while that between 2002 and 2009 this trend have change, cardiovascular event caused (31.8%) and VIH infection (22.07%) (p=0.026).The annual crude mortality rate decreased -0.485 deaths ‰ inmates/year (IC 95%: -0.864 to -0.107). Standardizing rates, we get 42 deaths expected for the wholly period, with Standarized Mortality Ratio of 1.407 (I.C. 95%: 1.071 to 1.816). CONCLUSIONS: The main cause of mortality has been no-HIV diseases, among these mainly cardiovascular events. The trend of mortality rate has been decreasing although we observe 40.7% plus of deaths than we would expect.

Causas y tendencia de la mortalidad en una prisión española (1994-2009) / Causes and trends of mortality in a Spanish prison (1994-2009)

Fundamento: El conocimiento de las causas de mortalidad puede ser una herramienta valiosa para procurar mejores cuidados de salud a las personas encarceladas. El objetivo del trabajo es describir la mortalidad y su tendencia en nuestro centro. Método: Estudio descriptivo de los fallecimientos ocurridos entre el 01/01/1994 y 31/12/2009. Se compararon mediante el test exacto de Fisher dos periodos de 8 años para valorar cambios en las causas de mortalidad. Previa estandarización indirecta de tasas, comparamos la mortalidad de nuestro centro con la del resto de las prisiones españolas. Mediante un modelo de regresión lineal establecimos la tendencia de las tasas de mortalidad. Resultados: Hubo 59 defunciones, 58 en hombres, con una mediana de edad de 34,9 años (28,7- 40,4). El 64,4% eran VIH+. Desde 1994 hasta 2001 la principal causa de mortalidad fue la infección VIH (48,6%) y la segunda los eventos cardiovasculares (10,8%), mientras que entre 2002 y 2009 los eventos cardiovasculares causaron un 31,8% y la infección VIH un 22,7% (p=0,026). Las tasas crudas de mortalidad anual tuvieron tendencia descendente a razón de 0,485 muertes internos/año (IC 95%: 0,864 a -0,107). Estandarizando tasas corresponderían 42 muertes esperadas en todo el período, con una Razón de Mortalidad Estandarizada de 1,407 (IC 95%: 1,071 a 1,816). Conclusiones: La principal causa de mortalidad fue la enfermedad no-VIH, fundamentalmente por eventos cardiovasculares. La tendencia de la tasa de mortalidad fue descendente, aunque observamos un 40,7% más de defunciones de las que cabría esperar (AU)

Background: There are a few mortality researches in prisons. To know this measure can to be important for take decisions of Public Health. The aim of the paper is to describe mortality and its trend in our prison. Methods: This is a descriptive and retrospective study of the deaths between 01/01/1994 and 31/12/2009. Two periods of 8 years have been compared through exact test of Fisher in order to detect changes in causes of mortality. First of all, we made an indirect standardization of rates and compare mortality in our institution with other Spanish prisons. Through linear regression model we have settled in trends of mortality rates. Results: Had 59 deaths, 58 in men with a median age 34.9 years old (28.7- 40.4). 64,4% were HIV+ . From 1994 to 2001 the main cause of mortality was VIH infection (48.6%) the second one was cardiovascular event (10.8%), while that between 2002 and 2009 this trend have change, cardiovascular event caused (31.8%) and VIH infection (22.07%) (p=0.026).The annual crude mortality rate decreased -0.485 deaths inmates/year (IC 95%: -0.864 to -0.107). Standardizing rates, we get 42 deaths expected for the wholly period, with Standarized Mortality Ratio of 1.407 (I.C. 95%: 1.071 to 1.816). Conclusions: The main cause of mortality has been no-HIV diseases, among these mainly cardiovascular events. The trend of mortality rate has been decreasing although we observe 40.7% plus of deaths than we would expect (AU)