Mortality of Roma population in Serbia, 2002-2005

To describe and compare mortality and population changes in the Roma and non-Roma population in Serbia in 2002 and 2005. The number of cases of death were obtained from the 2002 and 2005 Mortality Database and population data from the Population Census 2002. Standardized sex specific rates of non-traumatic and traumatic mortality in 2002 and 2005 were calculated in relation to the European standard population. We presented population pyramid and aging index for both populations in 2002 and compared sex specific standardized traumatic and non-traumatic mortality rates and the average age of death for 2002 and 2005. The causes of death were coded according to the 10th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) groups, and the proportional mortalities in the year 2002 and 2005 were compared between the Roma and non-Roma population using chi2 test. Standardized mortality rates were higher in the Roma than in the general population. Non-traumatic mortality rate in Roma men in 2002 was 18.2 per 1000 and in slightly decreased to 18.0 per 1000 in 2005; it was significantly higher than in non-Roma men in both years (11.9 per 1000 in 2002 and 12.5 per 1000 in 2005; P