Trends in asthma and pneumonia-related mortality in the United States: a CDC wonder database analysis (1999–2023)

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Source: Frontiers Medicine

Original: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmed.2026.1736476...

Published: 2026-01-27T00:00:00Z

The study analyzed trends in mortality associated with asthma and pneumonia in the US during 1999–2023 using the CDC WONDER database. The research found that men had significantly higher mortality rates from pneumonia and asthma compared to women throughout the study period. African-American patients experienced the highest death rate at 29.21 per 100,000 people in 1999, but also had the most significant reduction to 13.91 per 100,000 people in 2023. Mortality was consistently higher in rural areas compared to urban regions. By age, the highest death rates were seen in patients older than 85 years (747.90 per 100,000 people in 1999), while the lowest were in children aged 5–14 years (0.51 per 100,000 people in 1999). The study confirmed significant epidemiologic differences in asthma- and pneumonia-related deaths, with older patients, men, African-Americans, and rural residents at the highest risk.