New report details life expectancy, leading causes of death in Sonoma County

A first-of-its-kind report breaks down the causes of premature death by city and region.|

First the good news: The average life expectancy for Sonoma County residents is 82 years - better than the national average of 79 - and county death and premature death rates are declining.

But not all is equal across the county’s nearly 1,800 square miles.

According to a first-of-its kind epidemiological study, there are troubling regional, racial and gender disparities among those who die too soon.

On average, the county’s wealthiest residents live almost six years longer than its poorest; residents in Healdsburg live almost seven years longer than those in the Russian River area; and Rohnert Park, Santa Rosa, Cloverdale-Geyserville and the Russian River area have higher rates of premature death than the county overall.

“Even though the county is doing better than the nation and is similar to the state in terms of life expectancy, people are dying earlier than others in some parts of the county,” said Sarah Katz, who headed the county’s epidemiology team that conducted the research.

The study, Summary Measures of Health, analyzed information collected from death certificates from 2013 to 2015. It helps identify emerging public health trends in different parts of the county and among different groups.

Though only 53 pages long, the report is replete with detailed tables and charts that are sure to help local health care providers and organizations better focus their efforts.

For example, one table breaks down the leading causes of death by race or ethnicity.

The table clearly shows that whites have a higher rate than Latinos of unintentional injury death, such as overdoses, falls and car accidents. However, unintentional injury deaths are among the top five causes of deaths for Latinos, American Indians and Asians. Whites and African-Americans were the only groups where unintentional death was not among the top five causes of death.

Of the 748 Latino deaths registered between 2013 and 2015, unintentional deaths accounted for ?7.8 percent, or 58 deaths. The study points out that many of the leading causes of death, including unintentional deaths, share similar risk factors that are largely preventable.

Substance abuse, including alcohol abuse, is a contributor to car accidents, overdoses and chronic liver disease. Tobacco use, poor diet and a lack of exercise can contribute to cancer, heart disease, chronic lower respiratory disease, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and stroke.

“If we know what is killing people earlier in life, we know how to target interventions to help prevent it,” Katz said. “This means not just looking at health care, but at the community conditions that have large influences on health.”

Katz said everyone should have the same opportunities for health, “which will improve overall county outcomes and likely reduce health care costs.”

Work on the report was started last spring and its release had been planned for the week after the October firestorms, which delayed public dissemination of the findings. The report has since been released to staff in the county’s Department of Health Services.

In one of the report’s tables, regional rates of premature death compared to the county’s overall rate is indicated with arrows pointing up or down. For example, the Russian River area has a higher premature death rate as a result of suicide compared to the overall county.

The report measures premature death by the number of years of life lost before a person reaches 75. A 35-year-old man who takes his own life, for example, would have lost ?40 years of potential life. A rate is calculated for every 100,000 people.

In the Russian River area, suicides were responsible for the loss of 210 years of life between 2013 and 2015. The suicide rate in the West County region was 576.8 years of life lost per 100,000 people.

Santa Rosa’s suicide rate, at 296.3, was lower than the county’s overall rate of 323.3, even though Santa Rosa saw a loss of 1,803 years of potential life lost, compared to 210 for the Russian River area.

Katz said the report helps health care providers and public policy leaders better understand the prevalence of such issues in different communities.

Alena Wall, executive director of the Center for Well-Being, said the report will provide useful information for a new health awareness initiative that will be launched this month. The initiative, called “It’s Up to Us,” is aimed at reducing heart attacks and strokes among the county’s most at-risk residents.

The campaign, endorsed by Health Action, is a partnership between the Center for Well Being, United Way of the Wine Country, St. Joseph Health, Sutter Health, Kaiser Permanente, Santa Rosa Community Health, the county health services department and others.

Wall said the initiative will use a team of health outreach workers to go out into neighborhoods and provide blood pressure screenings. Those with high blood pressure will then be linked to a primary care doctor, she said.

“We know that cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in Sonoma County and this report identifies its impact by city and town,” said Wall.

You can reach Staff Writer Martin Espinoza at 707-521-5213 or martin.espinoza@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @renofish.

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