Objective:

To report the mortality rate associated with Parkinson disease among US adults aged 65 years and older in 2024.

Approach:

• Data Source: Analysis based on National Vital Statistics System mortality files accessed through the CDC’s Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research.
• Mortality Coding: Deaths identified using International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision codes G20 for Parkinson disease and G21 for secondary parkinsonism.
• Statistical Methods: Age-adjusted death rates calculated using the direct method and the 2000 US standard population; trends evaluated using Joinpoint regression.

Key Findings:

• ParkinsondiseasewastheninthleadingcauseofdeathamongUSadultsaged65yearsandolderin2024,with39,935deathsreported.Theage-adjusteddeathrateforParkinsondiseasewas72.0per100,000standardpopulationin2024.Deathratesamongmenwereapproximatelytwiceashighasthoseamongwomenthroughoutthe2014to2024period.Deathratesincreasedwithage,withthehighestratesobservedinadultsaged85yearsandolder.Whitenon-Hispanicadultshadthehighestage-adjusteddeathrateat81.7per100,000standardpopulation.

Interpretation:

The report indicates a decline in the age-adjusted death rate from 2021 to 2024, although this decrease was not statistically significant.

Limitations:

• Misclassification on death certificates may lead to underestimation of death rates, particularly among American Indian and Alaska Native non-Hispanic adults, potentially by as much as 34%.
• The report does not evaluate reasons for state-level variation in death rates.
• Findings are based on underlying-cause-of-death coding rather than diagnostic or clinical records.

Conclusion:

The findings highlight the mortality impact of Parkinson disease among older adults, with significant variations by sex, age, race, and state.

Sources:

• CDC National Center for Health Statistics