Falling the top cause of death for Chinese men: Lancet

Falling has emerged as the top cause of death for Chinese men, according to a study by The Lancet.

Falls, either unintentional or as suicide, were among the top 15 causes of death for Chinese men from 1990 to 2013. Men are more likely to die from a fall than certain cancers in some regions of China, the Britain-based medical journal found.

The study, published on Oct. 25, was conducted by researchers in China and the United States, including experts from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Office for Maternal and Child Health Surveillance, and the Seattle-based Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.

Experts assessed levels of and trends for all causes of death and years of life lost (YLL) in all 31 provincial regions in the Chinese mainland, as well as the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

The number of deaths in China increased from 8.6 million to 9.1 million between 1990 and 2013, but the age-standardized death rate fell by 33.1 percent during the same period, according to the report.

Top causes of death include stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary artery disease and lung cancer for both men and women.

For Chinese men, the top 15 causes of death overall included road injuries, self-harm and falls, according to the report. Endi