Table 3.
Comparison of COMSA and WHO cause-of-death proportions and counts in Sierra Leone, 2018–20
| COMSA Sierra Leone national deaths | WHO estimated total deaths | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| All causes | 76 939 (100%) | 76 939 (100%) | |
| Communicable, maternal, perinatal, and nutritional causes | 51 784 (67·3%) | 48 060 (62·5%) | |
| Tuberculosis | 1691 (2·2%) | 3062 (4·0%) | |
| STIs (including HIV and AIDS) | 1482 (1·9%) | 3678 (4·8%) | |
| Diarrhoea | 4440 (5·8%) | 6111 (7·9%) | |
| Malaria | 16 718 (21·7%) | 9111 (11·8%) | |
| Respiratory infections | 4386 (5·7%) | 8244 (10·7%) | |
| Other infectious and parasitic diseases | 11 921 (15·5%) | 5051 (6·6%) | |
| Non-communicable causes | 16 909 (22·0%) | 21 172 (27·5%) | |
| All cancer | 1827 (2·4%) | 3311 (4·3%) | |
| Sickle-cell anaemia | 781 (1·0%) | 909 (1·2%) | |
| Stroke | 2876 (3·7%) | 3044 (4·0%) | |
| Ischaemic heart disease | 3482 (4·5%) | 2864 (3·7%) | |
| Liver and alcohol-related disease | 1361 (1·8%) | 1453 (1·9%) | |
| Congenital anomalies | 242 (0·3%) | 2076 (2·7%) | |
| Injuries | 6421 (8·3%) | 7707 (10·0%) | |
| Road traffic accidents | 2061 (2·7%) | 3230 (4·2%) | |
| Falls | 1032 (1·3%) | 285 (0·4%) | |
| Drowning | 432 (0·6%) | 480 (0·6%) | |
| Suicide | 44 (0·1%) | 618 (0·8%) | |
| Interpersonal violence | 211 (0·3%) | 832 (1·1%) | |
| Ill-defined or cause unknown | 1825 (2·4%) | .. | |
Data are n (%), with the percentages weighted by the sampling probability. WHO total deaths were 56 775 compared with 76 939 in the UN Population Division for ages 0–69 years. WHO totals7 are scaled to UN Population Division totals.1 WHO has produced two incompatible estimates of total maternal deaths in 2020: 1192 (from the Global Health Estimates)7 and 2811 (from the multi-agency estimates).8 COMSA=Countrywide Mortality Surveillance for Action. STI=sexually transmitted infection.