Definitions
Injury-Related Mortality Module
Age Adjustment: Age adjustment is the
application of age-specific rates in a population of interest to a standardized age distribution. It enhances the
comparability of populations by controlling for the effects of their differing age compositions. The age-adjusted
rate for a population of interest can be compared to that of a different age-adjusted population at the same point
in time or the same population at a different point in time. Age-adjusted rates in WISH are calculated using the
direct method based on the year 2000 Standard U.S. population.
Mortality Rate: The mortality rate is calculated by dividing the number of deaths per year by the population.
It is usually expressed as the number of deaths per 100,000 population. The rate may refer to deaths in a specific
group, or to deaths from a specific cause, or to all deaths in the entire population. The rate may be adjusted for
the age composition of the group or it may be the observed (or "crude") rate.
Rates by Race/Ethnicity: The population estimates used as denominators for the mortality rates in WISH are
based on the bridged race estimates
provided by the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). The estimates have been
controlled so they sum to the annual estimates published by the Bureau of Health Information.
Producing the bridged race estimates was necessary because race categories in Census 2000 differed from those used
in previous years. Specifically, data on race from Census 2000 were not directly comparable to data from previous
years due, in large part, to giving respondents the option to report more than one race.
As a result, NCHS and the Census Bureau produced bridged race estimates that allow calculation of rates by
race/ethnicity across years. These estimates distribute (or "bridge") the "more than one race" and "some other
race" populations into one of four major race groups (American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, Black,
and White) and two ethnicity groups (Hispanic/Latino, non-Hispanic/Latino).
NCHS and the Census Bureau have produced this set of bridged race estimates extending back to the 1990 Census, and
plan to produce these estimates on an annual basis in the future. WISH will be updated each year as these estimates
become available.
External Cause of Death: WISH displays Wisconsin data by external cause of death or mechanism of injury
(e.g., fall, fire/flames, firearm, poisoning, and suffocation) and by intent or manner of death (e.g., suicide,
homicide, unintentional injury).
All 1999 and later injury mortality statistics are based on codes in the International Classification of
Disease-10th Revision (ICD-10). ICD-10 is used in various countries worldwide for coding death. The ICD-10 codes
include code sets for types of disease, medical procedures, and external causes of injury.
All 1998 and earlier injury mortality statistics are based on codes in the International Classification of
Disease-9th Revision (ICD-9). ICD-9 is used in various countries worldwide in medical reports. The ICD-9 codes
include code sets for types of disease, injuries, and poisonings as well as external cause of injury (E codes).
The WISH external causes of injury groupings are consistent with standard ICD-9 and ICD-10 code groupings for
reporting injury mortality data developed by CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC), CDC's
National Center fro Health Statistics, and the American Public Health Association. See
"ICD-10 Framework: External Cause of Injury
Mortality Matrix" (exit DHS).
The numbers of deaths by external cause of injury come from annual mortality data of Vital Records Section, Bureau
of Health Information and Policy. For more information, visit the Wisconsin Vital Records
web page on mortality data.
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Last Revised: July 30, 2008
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