TITLE:
Patterns and Trends of Mortality in Nigeria: A Tertiary Health Care Perspective in South-Eastern Nigeria
AUTHORS:
Felix Edoiseh Ehidiamhen, Stanley Emeka Ogbata, Obioma Richards Akwada, Robinson Uchenna Ugwuanyi, Daniel Einstein Obaseki, Olushola Olakunle Jegede, Dafup Katdel Istifanus, Kalu Stephen Akpaleji, Anemeje Onyeka Afam, Elom Onochie Peter
KEYWORDS:
Pattern of Death, Mortality, Brought-In Dead, Hospital Patients, Policy
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pathology,
Vol.15 No.4,
August
21,
2025
ABSTRACT: Background: Morbidity and Mortality analyses with an exposition on the patterns, trends, and frequencies are relevant parameters for documentation of the geographical burden of disease and for public health planning, involving essential health needs, assessing intervention programs, and the re-evaluation of health policies in any organized society, both in developed and developing countries worldwide. Of all mortality measures, the infant mortality rate is the most frequently used indicator of broad socioeconomic well-being. The general pattern occurs in all human populations; however, the precise configuration of the mortality schedule depends on both the level of mortality and the relative importance of different age-specific causes of death. The relative contributions of mortality at different ages (the age-related pattern of mortality) have important implications for policy formulation, for the allocation of resources, and for targeting interventions. Aim: To determine the burden on healthcare due to the major causes of death and their related patterns from our clinical reviews and death certifications of all cases of mortality in our teaching hospital in Uburu. Result: A total of 291 mortalities between March 2022 and June 2025 occurred in DUFUTH. Out of these, 34 (11.7%) cases were brought-in-dead (BID) to the hospital, while 257 (89.3%) cases were hospitalised patients. 118 (41%) and 173 (59%) were female and male, respectively. Cardiovascular causes of death accounted for the highest proportion of all deaths in DUFUTH from March 2022 to June 2025. It accounted for 72 (24.7%), followed by neoplasms, which accounted for 54 (19%). Paediatric diseases accounted for 51 (17.5%), and respiratory pathology accounted for 14 (4.8%). Infective causes of death accounted for 15 (5.2%), while gastrointestinal deaths accounted for 9 (3.1%) and hepatobiliary deaths amounted to 11 (3.8%). Deaths due to metabolic diseases accounted for 7 (2.4%), and maternal mortality stood at 3 (1.0%); diseases of the central nervous system accounted for 2 (0.7%), trauma-causing deaths 14 (4.8%), and renal diseases 5 (1.7%), respectively. Stroke was the overall commonest cause of death, followed by prostatic carcinoma and sepsis. Conclusion: The invaluable insights into the patterns and nature of death provided in this research reawakened the need for targeted interventions to reduce mortality due to cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and all other implicated diseases in this research, as no man is immune to death. Understanding these patterns is a vital tool in developing effective public health policies and interventions in our locality, as well as the entire nation at large.