This article aims to quantify the asthma mortality rate using the multiple causality analytical method in comparison to the underlying cause of death. Data were obtained from all death certificates (224,854) of individuals from 5 to 34 years of age issued in 1993, 1994, and 1995 in the Municipality of São Paulo, in which mention of the word asthma was considered valid information (code 493/ICD-9). First, the underlying cause of death was studied. The same data were then used, but submitted to the multiple causality method. The comparative study of basic and multiple causes of death increased the diagnosis of asthma by a ratio of 1.165. The over-20-year age group remained the most affected by the problem. The age range of individuals most affected by this disease did not change with the analytical method (20 to 34 years). Although asthma was present more frequently when the multiple causality method was used, the increase in the number of asthma diagnoses highlights that the disease can be considered underreported in Brazil in the chain of events leading to death.
Asthma; Mortality; Risk Factors; Cause of Death
