Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsMorbidityComorbidityMortalityPrevention
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Morbidity
Comorbidity
Mortality
Prevention
Morbidity and mortality are closely linked. Certain changes can influence the course of a disease and, in turn, the risk the illness can lead or contribute to death.
This article explains the difference between morbidity and mortality. It also takes a look at ways to prevent morbidities and protect your long-term health.
What Is Morbidity?
Morbidity is thestate of having an illness or medical condition, either mental or physical. Such issues can progress over time and gradually affect a person’s health and quality of life.
However, the term has absolutelyno relationship to your likelihood of death or even how “well” or “unwell” you are.It is only when a disease or condition progresses that the impact on your health may be felt and the risk of death may increase.
People who have certain morbidities may not live as long as those who do not.It’s also possible that morbidity may have no impact on a person’s life expectancy or risk of death, especially if their condition is well-managed.
Examples of Morbidities
Verywell / Hugo Lin
Examples of morbidities include:
How to Estimate Your Life Expectancy
What Is Comorbidity?
Comorbidity means that a person hasmore than one illness at the same time. Comorbid conditions may occur because of:
Examples of common comorbidities include:
Comorbid diseases often make each condition worse. On the flip side, managing one comorbid condition can often have a positive effect on the other.
What Is Mortality?
Insurers and public health experts use these statistics to assess the impact of a disease on healthcare costs or to determine where healthcare costs are best spent.
Mortality ratesdescribe the incidence of deaths among a specific population over a specific time. In national studies, it is typically described as the number of cases per 100,000. (In smaller studies, the mortality rate may be described as deaths per 1,000 or 10,000.)
By way of example, the current mortality rate for lung cancer among males in the United States is roughly 40 per 100,000.
When an event or a disease causes more deaths than expected, it is calledexcess mortality. COVID-19 is one such example. The 2020 pandemic caused 50% more deaths than were expected over that period of time.
Common Causes of Mortality in the U.S.
Preventing Morbidities
If you are a risk of certain diseases—such as if diabetes runs in your family—you can often take steps to prevent them. By changing your diet, losing weight, and exercising regularly, you may not only avoidtype 2 diabetesbut also reduce your risk of heart disease.
Morbidity can also drop when people are provided health education and adequate healthcare. The current disparity in access to healthcare in the United States largely accounts for why communities of color have higher rates of morbidity and mortality from manageable conditions like diabetes and HIV.
Health Disparities: What They Mean and Examples
9 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Cancer Institute.Morbidity.John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.Life expectancy gains threatened as more older Americans suffer from multiple medical conditions.Park C, Fang J, Hawkins NA, Wang G.Comorbidity status and annual total medical expenditures in U.S. hypertensive adults.American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2017;53(6):S172-S181. doi:10.1016%2Fj.amepre.2017.07.014Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU.The relationship of health insurance and mortality: Is lack of insurance deadly?Ann Intern Med. 2017;167(6):424-431. doi:10.7326/M17-1403American Lung Association.Lung cancer trends brief: Mortality.Karlinsky A, Kobak D.Tracking excess mortality across countries during the COVID-19 pandemic with the World Mortality Dataset.eLife. 2021;10:e69336. doi:10.7554/eLife.69336Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Leading causes of morbidity and mortality.National Institute of Health.Diabetes, heart disease and stroke.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health disparities in Black or African American people.
9 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Cancer Institute.Morbidity.John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.Life expectancy gains threatened as more older Americans suffer from multiple medical conditions.Park C, Fang J, Hawkins NA, Wang G.Comorbidity status and annual total medical expenditures in U.S. hypertensive adults.American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2017;53(6):S172-S181. doi:10.1016%2Fj.amepre.2017.07.014Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU.The relationship of health insurance and mortality: Is lack of insurance deadly?Ann Intern Med. 2017;167(6):424-431. doi:10.7326/M17-1403American Lung Association.Lung cancer trends brief: Mortality.Karlinsky A, Kobak D.Tracking excess mortality across countries during the COVID-19 pandemic with the World Mortality Dataset.eLife. 2021;10:e69336. doi:10.7554/eLife.69336Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Leading causes of morbidity and mortality.National Institute of Health.Diabetes, heart disease and stroke.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health disparities in Black or African American people.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
National Cancer Institute.Morbidity.John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.Life expectancy gains threatened as more older Americans suffer from multiple medical conditions.Park C, Fang J, Hawkins NA, Wang G.Comorbidity status and annual total medical expenditures in U.S. hypertensive adults.American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2017;53(6):S172-S181. doi:10.1016%2Fj.amepre.2017.07.014Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU.The relationship of health insurance and mortality: Is lack of insurance deadly?Ann Intern Med. 2017;167(6):424-431. doi:10.7326/M17-1403American Lung Association.Lung cancer trends brief: Mortality.Karlinsky A, Kobak D.Tracking excess mortality across countries during the COVID-19 pandemic with the World Mortality Dataset.eLife. 2021;10:e69336. doi:10.7554/eLife.69336Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Leading causes of morbidity and mortality.National Institute of Health.Diabetes, heart disease and stroke.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health disparities in Black or African American people.
National Cancer Institute.Morbidity.
John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.Life expectancy gains threatened as more older Americans suffer from multiple medical conditions.
Park C, Fang J, Hawkins NA, Wang G.Comorbidity status and annual total medical expenditures in U.S. hypertensive adults.American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2017;53(6):S172-S181. doi:10.1016%2Fj.amepre.2017.07.014
Woolhandler S, Himmelstein DU.The relationship of health insurance and mortality: Is lack of insurance deadly?Ann Intern Med. 2017;167(6):424-431. doi:10.7326/M17-1403
American Lung Association.Lung cancer trends brief: Mortality.
Karlinsky A, Kobak D.Tracking excess mortality across countries during the COVID-19 pandemic with the World Mortality Dataset.eLife. 2021;10:e69336. doi:10.7554/eLife.69336
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Leading causes of morbidity and mortality.
National Institute of Health.Diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health disparities in Black or African American people.
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