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For Those Fifty or Older, Mortality Index Helps Determine Odds of Death Within the Next Ten Years

By Gerry W. Beyer

Images-6Dr. Marisa Cruz is the lead author of a study that indicates a certain list of health questions can help to predict the chances of dying soon for those 50 and older.

San Francisco researchers developed a mortality index for people older than 50, but the results of this 12-item index are best interpreted by doctors.  The index is used primarily to help doctors decide whether the need for certain medical procedures outweighs the risk of performing them. 

The researchers developed this index with data they collected in 1998 for 20,000 Americans over 50.  Researchers tracked the participants over ten years and in that time, nearly 6,000 participants died. 

LifeHealthPro points out some signs that increase one’s chances of dying in the next ten years.  Those signs include getting winded walking several blocks, smoking, and struggling with pushing a chair across a room.

See Lindsey Tanner, Your Chances of Dying by 2023? Test Offers a Clue, LifeHealthPro, Mar. 6, 2013.

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.