This study is to investigate how major causes of death, age group and sex differential influence Korean life expectancy at birth during the last decade.
The major finding are as follows :
1. The mortality change ages 0-4 has the largest impaction life expectancy and birth during the 1961-1989, contributed in both sexes with 5.3776(43.72%) and 5.2569(37.61%) years respectively. The decline in mortality at the oldest age group, after 65 years, had the largest impact on the increase in life expectancy during the last decade.
2. In 1978-79 and 1989, the mortality differential at ages 55-64 years still made the largest contribution to the total sex differential of life expectancy at birth. Particularly, in 1989, the mortality differential at the oldest ages had the largest impact on the increase to the total sex differential of life expectancy at birth.
3. In 1981-1991, a decrease in mortality from diseases of the circulatory system tended to reduce life expectancy, a change in the positive direction added 0.7519 and 0.7902 years among males and females. However, while an increase in mortality from diseases of the malignant neoplasms tended to reduce life expectancy, a change in the opposite direction added 0.9077 and 0.2944 years among males and females respectively. The reduction of the hypertensive diseases at ages 65-74 made the largest contribution of life years of all groups of causes to any age group.
4. In 1981 and 1991, the contribution of the specific cause of death to the total sex differential in life expectancy at birth was astonishingly similar. In 1991, the increase of deaths of malignant neoplasms, contributed 0.7657 years of life to the total sex differential in life expectancy at birth, a change in the positive direction added 0.1632 years.
5. The life expectancy at birth could be most prolonged by elimination of the circulatory system as causes of death in both sexes during the last decade(1981-1991). The redutions in decreases of the hypertensive diseases, infectious and parasitic diseases were the first and second most important contributors to the increase of years by elimination.
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