AIDS, Flu Contribute to Record Deaths

More people in the United States died in 1988 than in any one year on record as deaths caused by AIDS, homicide and influenza rose while mortality from heart disease, stroke and cancer declined, a federal study found.

In its Final Mortality Statistics, the Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics reported 2,167,999 deaths in 1988--44,676 more than the number recorded in 1987, the previous record year for annual deaths.

The report said population growth, the “aging” of the population and an outbreak of influenza were contributing factors.

During the one-year period, there was a 20% increase in the death rate for AIDS, an 8% increase for pneumonia and influenza, and a 5% rise in homicide. The 1988 homicide rate of 9 per 100,000 people was slightly lower than the record high in 1980.

Death from heart disease was down 1.9%; stroke deaths were down 2%, and cancer mortality declined 0.2%, the report said.

William Roper, director of the Centers for Disease Control, said: “As we succeed in reducing mortality from the leading causes of death, we must address the increasing risk from homicide and HIV infection,” which causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome.