Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in cause-specific premature mortality in Belgium, 1998–2019

Background Higher levels of socioeconomic deprivation have been consistently associated with increased risk of premature mortality, but a detailed analysis by causes of death is lacking in Belgium. We aim to investigate the association between area deprivation and all-cause and cause-specific premature mortality in Belgium over the period 1998–2019. Methods We used the 2001 and 2011 Belgian Indices of Multiple Deprivation to assign statistical sectors, the smallest geographical units in the country, into deprivation deciles. All-cause and cause-specific premature mortality rates, population... Mehr ...