Abstract
Objective
To describe mortality, cause of death and life expectancy among Chinese (both immigrant and Canadian-born) and other Canadians in the Province of Alberta.
Methods
A Chinese surname list was applied to the Alberta Health Insurance Plan and Vital Statistics Birth registry databases to define the Chinese population, and to the Vital Statistics Death registry to determine deaths among Chinese in Alberta from 1995 to 2003. Age- and sex-specific mortality, cause of death and life expectancy were calculated.
Results
Of nearly 3 million Alberta residents, about 4% were Chinese in 2003. The ageadjusted mortality for Chinese was 4.2 per 1000 and for non-Chinese 6.2 per 1000 population. Infant mortality was lower for Chinese (4.9/1000 live births) than non-Chinese (6.2/1000 live births). Life expectancy at birth was 6.3 years longer for Chinese males compared to non-Chinese males (83.3 versus 77.0), and 5.4 years longer for Chinese females compared to non-Chinese females (87.9 versus 82.5). Cancer, heart disease and stroke were the leading causes of death for both Chinese and non-Chinese Albertans.
Conclusions
The Chinese ethnic population of Alberta had lower mortality and longer life expectancy than remaining Albertans, suggesting that the Chinese population has better health status than other Albertans. Reasons for the health gap between Chinese and non- Chinese populations should be further explored.
MeSH terms: Mortality, life expectancy, Chinese, Alberta
Résumé
Objectif
Décrire la mortalité, les causes de mortalité et l’espérance de vie chez les personnes d’origine chinoise (immigrants et Canadiens de naissance) et les autres Canadiens vivant en Alberta.
Méthode
Pour définir la population d’origine chinoise, nous avons cherché une liste de noms de famille chinois dans les bases de données du régime d’assurance-santé et du registre des naissances de l’Alberta. Pour calculer la mortalité dans la population d’origine chinoise en Alberta entre 1995 et 2003, nous avons consulté le registre provincial des décès. La mortalité, les causes de mortalité et l’espérance de vie ont été calculées par âge et par sexe.
Résultats
Sur les près de 3 millions de résidents de l’Alberta, environ 4 % étaient d’origine chinoise en 2003. Le taux de mortalité rajusté selon l’âge chez les personnes d’origine chinoise était de 4,2 p. 1 000, et pour les non-Chinois, de 6,2 p. 1 000. La mortalité infantile était plus faible dans la population d’origine chinoise (4,9 p. 1 000 naissances vivantes) que dans la population non-chinoise (6,2 p. 1 000 naissances vivantes). L’espérance de vie à la naissance était plus longue de 6,3 ans chez les hommes d’origine chinoise que chez les hommes d’autres origines (83,3 ans c. 77 ans), et elle était plus longue de 5,4 ans chez les femmes d’origine chinoise que chez les femmes d’autres origines (87,9 ans c. 82,5 ans). Pour les personnes d’origine chinoise comme pour tous les Albertains, les principales causes de mortalité étaient le cancer, les maladies coronariennes et les AVC.
Conclusion
Les personnes d’origine chinoise en Alberta ont un taux de mortalité plus faible et une espérance de vie plus longue que les autres Albertains, ce qui donne à penser que l’état de santé de la population chinoise est meilleur que celui des autres Albertains. Les raisons de cet écart de santé entre les populations d’origine chinoise et non chinoise mériteraient d’être étudiées.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements: This study is based on data provided by Alberta Health and Wellness. The interpretation and conclusions contained herein are those of the researchers and do not represent the views of the Government of Alberta. Dr. Quan is supported by a Population Health Investigator Award from the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and by a New Investigator Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
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