Burden of Diabetes in the US: Mortality

As many as 57,000 deaths each year are directly attributable to diabetes, making it the 7th leading cause of death.

When all deaths linked to diabetes are counted, diabetes-related mortality reaches about 182,000, making diabetes the 3rd leading cause of death.

The good news is that the mortality rate in the diabetic population has been on a downward trend, decreasing by 9% from 1980 to 1994. The bad news is that because of the increased incidence of diabetes, the number of people whose death can be attributed to diabetes is higher.

Diabetes death rates remained higher for blacks than for whites and were highest for black males. Among American Indian, Hawaiian, or Filipino females, diabetes was the 4th leading cause of death. (CDC, 1998)