There were 31,184 deaths in Ireland in 2019 of which 16,272 were males and 14,912 were females. This is equivalent to a rate of 6.3 deaths per 1,000 total population, a decrease of 0.1 from 2018. See Tables 3.1, 3.2, and Figures 3.1, 3.2.
Additionally, significant decreases in the number of deaths due to circulatory disease have been recorded, down from an average of 2.5 per 1,000 population in the years 2001-2010 to 1.8 per 1,000 population in 2019. See Table 3.18. For the latest population estimates, see PEA01.
The 2019 rates in Figure 3.1 and Figure 3.2 are based on estimated usual residence census of population figures. See Background Notes.
| Total Deaths | Male | Female | |
| 2009 | 6.3 | 6.5 | 6 |
| 2010 | 6.1 | 6.3 | 5.9 |
| 2011 | 6.2 | 6.4 | 6.1 |
| 2012 | 6.4 | 6.6 | 6.1 |
| 2013 | 6.4 | 6.5 | 6.2 |
| 2014 | 6.3 | 6.4 | 6.1 |
| 2015 | 6.4 | 6.6 | 6.3 |
| 2016 | 6.5 | 6.7 | 6.3 |
| 2017 | 6.3 | 6.5 | 6.2 |
| 2018 | 6.4 | 6.7 | 6.2 |
| 2019 | 6.3 | 6.7 | 6 |
| Total over 65 | Male over 65 | Female over 65 | |
| 2009 | 43.9 | 47.3 | 41.1 |
| 2010 | 42.4 | 44.8 | 40.4 |
| 2011 | 41.8 | 43.9 | 40.1 |
| 2012 | 41.9 | 44.3 | 39.9 |
| 2013 | 41.4 | 43.1 | 40 |
| 2014 | 39.9 | 41.5 | 38.4 |
| 2015 | 40.1 | 41.7 | 38.8 |
| 2016 | 39.8 | 41.6 | 38.3 |
| 2017 | 38.5 | 40.2 | 37 |
| 2018 | 37.9 | 40 | 36.1 |
| 2019 | 36.8 | 39.2 | 34.6 |
For comparison purposes between the EU member states, the age effect can be taken into account by using a standard population. See Technical Notes.
As method for standardisation, the direct method is applied. Standardised death rates are calculated for the age group 0-64 ('premature death') and for the total of ages. As most causes of death vary significantly with people's age and sex, the use of standardised death rates improves comparability over time and between countries.
For European comparison on standardised death rates see Eurostat.
Variations in the age distribution of the population from one area to another have an effect on the comparability of death rates between different areas. Comparisons over a period of years are also affected by changes in the age and sex structures of the population. If a particular county contains a large proportion of elderly persons, the crude death rate per 1,000 population will be relatively high even if the health conditions in that area are better than the general average. In an attempt to overcome this, standardised rates are prepared. At county level, this is done by calculating the death rate in each age group of the population in that county and multiplying the death rate in each age group by the population in the state in that age group, summing the resulting products and dividing by the overall population.
The standardised death rate for Ireland per 1,000 population in 2019 was 6.3 and the corresponding rate for 2018 was 6.4. In certain areas the standardised death rates differ significantly from the crude rates, for example Fingal which had a crude death rate of 3.6 in 2019 and a standardised rate of 5.4 (reflecting the very young age structure in Fingal). The standardised death rates in 2019 were lowest in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown (at 5.2 per 1,000 population) and highest in Cork City (at 7.5 per 1,000 population). See Table 3.2.
There were 11,983 deaths (38.4%) that occurred in general and orthopaedic hospitals in 2019 while 5,307 deaths (17.0%) occurred in nursing homes and 2,319 deaths (7.4%) occurred in hospices. Domiciliary (home) deaths accounted for 7,136 (22.9%) deaths. See Tables 3.3A and 3.3B.
Of those aged 75 and over, 37.2% died in general and orthopaedic hospitals, 23.8% died in nursing homes and 19.1% died at home. See Table 3.3B.
| For long labels below use to display on multiple lines | Causes of Death 2019 (%) |
|---|---|
| circulatory diseases | 28.6 |
| malignant neoplasms | 30.7 |
| respiratory diseases | 12.6 |
| external causes | 4.2 |
| remainder | 23.8 |
Of deaths occurring in 2019, 72.9% were attributed to three main chapters in the ICD-10 classification: II (C00-D48) neoplasms (including malignant neoplasms) (31.6%), IX (I00-I99) diseases of the circulatory system (28.6%) and X (J00-J99) diseases of the respiratory system (12.6%). A similar overall breakdown is evident for males and females. See Table 3.5 and Figure 3.3.
Within different age groups, the assigned underlying causes of death differ significantly. For those aged less than five years, the main cause of death was certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (40.2%). In this age group, 37.7% of male deaths and 43.2% of female deaths were attributed to these causes. Congenital malformations and chromosomal abnormalities also accounted for a large volume of deaths (38.1%) in this age group. The numbers of deaths in the 0-4 age group are very much dominated by infant deaths (86.1% aged under 1 year). See Table 3.6 and Chapter “Infant Mortality, Stillbirths and Maternal Mortality 2019”.
In the age group 5-14, neoplasms were the main underlying cause of death (29.6%) with 29.3% of male deaths and 30.8% of female deaths recorded in this category. See Table 3.6.
A large proportion of deaths in the age groups from ages 15 to 34 were due to external causes of injury and poisoning (54.3%). 60.3% of males aged 15 to 34 died due to external causes of injury and poisoning. The corresponding figure for females was 39.8%. Additionally, there were almost 2.4 male deaths to 1 female death in this age group for all causes of death. External causes of injury and poisoning were also the main causes of death for males aged 35-44 (39.0%), while neoplasms were the main causes of female deaths in this age group (44.3%). See Table 3.6.
From 45 to 74 years of age, neoplasms were the main underlying cause of death (46.8%). Within the female age cohort of 45 to 64 years, 57.4% of deaths were due to neoplasms compared to 40.5% of males in the same age group. See Table 3.6.
In the older age groups (75 years and over), 32.4% of deaths were due to diseases of the circulatory system. See Table 3.6.
The term "cancer" implies malignancy, but neoplasms can be subclassified as either malignant, benign, in situ, or uncertain whether malignant or benign. Tables that classify neoplasms will contain malignant neoplasms but also these other classifications.
There were 9,860 deaths due to neoplasms in 2019, i.e. 2.0 per 1,000 population. 9,574 of these were due to malignant neoplasms, of which 5,222 occurred in males and 4,352 in females. See Tables 3.6, 3.8, 3.9.
Malignant neoplasm of the digestive organs was the most common of these cancers (30.9%). Deaths due to cancer of the digestive organs was the most common form of malignant neoplasm in males and females at 33.1% and 28.3% respectively. Breast cancer was the most common type of malignant neoplasm for females aged between 35 and 54 years at 28.6%. Neoplasms was the most common cause of death in males (41.4%) and females (52.4%) aged from 35 to 74. See Tables 3.6, 3.9.
Leitrim had the highest age standardised death rate for neoplasms, 2.4 per 1,000 population, while Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the lowest rate at 1.6 per 1,000 population. See Table 3.8.
For a breakdown of number of deaths from malignant neoplasms classified by area of residence see Table 3.10.
8,928 deaths were attributed to diseases of the circulatory system in 2019, of which 4,724 were deaths of males and 4,204 were deaths of females.
Overall, diseases of the circulatory system were the second most common causes of death in 2019 (28.6%), 1.8 deaths per 1,000 population. Almost three-quarters (72.5%) of deaths due to diseases of the circulatory system occurred where the person was aged 75 and over. For deaths due to circulatory disease in those aged under 75, there were 2.5 male deaths to 1 female death. See Tables 3.5, 3.6, 3.8, 3.11.
For deaths caused by diseases of the circulatory system, 46.3% were due to ischaemic heart diseases and 18.1% were due to cerebrovascular diseases. Acute myocardial infarction accounted for 1,702 (41.2%) of the 4,132 ischaemic heart disease deaths. See Table 3.12.
Longford recorded the highest age-standardised death rate for diseases of the circulatory system, 2.3 per 1,000 population, while Fingal and Roscommon recorded the lowest at 1.5 per 1,000 population. See Table 3.8.
Deaths from diseases of the respiratory system in 2019 numbered 3,930, of which 1,895 were males and 2,035 were females. There were 1,803 deaths (45.9%) from chronic lower respiratory diseases and 1,090 deaths (27.7%) due to influenza and pneumonia. See Tables 3.13, 3.14.
Diseases of the respiratory system accounted for 12.6% of all deaths (age-standardised death rate of 0.8 per 1,000 population), affecting in particular the older age groups, with 76.8% of these occurring in persons aged 75 and over. See Tables 3.5, 3.6, 3.8, 3.13.
With 1.2 per 1,000 population, Limerick City recorded the highest age-standardised death rate for diseases of the respiratory system, while Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Galway City, Cavan, and Fingal recorded the lowest at 0.6 per 1,000 population. See Table 3.8.
In 2019, 1,891 deaths were due to dementia of which 1,190 (62.9%) were female, and 501 deaths were due to Alzheimer of which 341 (68.1%) were female. See Tables 3.20, 3.21.
The number of deaths from external causes of injury and poisoning occurring in 2019 was 1,324, of which 894 were males and 430 females. As has been mentioned, deaths not registered within the year of occurrence or the subsequent calendar year, have been excluded from the main body of this report. The exclusion of these cases may have a relatively more significant effect on the number of deaths classified to some external causes. See Tables 3.5, 3.6.
Accidents accounted for 67.2% of all external causes of injury and poisoning, while intentional self-harm accounted for a further 29.5%. Events of undetermined intent accounted for 1.4%, while deaths due to assaults accounted for 1.0%. Complications of medical and surgical care and sequelae of external causes of morbidity and mortality accounted for the remaining 1.0%. See Table 3.15.
Almost 2.1 as many males died due to external causes compared to females in 2019. Differences in more specific causes of death and also within different age-groups were also significant. Just over 1.7 as many males died due to accidents compared to females in 2019. Compared to 2018 figures, accidental poisoning by and exposure to noxious substances (38.9% in 2019) has replaced land transport accidents (27.8%) as the main type of accidental deaths in males under 25 years of age. The greatest cause of accidental deaths in the male 25 to 54-year age groups was also due to poisoning by and exposure to noxious substances (62.7%). The majority of female accidents occurred in the older age-groups, particularly in females aged 75 and over which accounted for 55.7% of female accidents, 36.8% of these were from falls. See Table 3.15.
There were 390 deaths due to intentional self-harm in 2019; 300 (76.9%) males and 90 (23.1%) females. The highest number of deaths recorded from intentional self-harm were in the 45-54 age group (97, or 24.9%). There were 72 (18.5%) such deaths in the 35-44 age group. See Table 3.15, 3.19. For a breakdown of number of deaths due to intentional self-harm classified by area of residence, see Table 3.17.
Death due to intentional self-harm is classified as an unnatural death and therefore must be referred to the Coroner for investigation. Investigations can take a protracted length of time to complete for various reasons (such as obtaining medical reports, health and safety reports, engineer’s reports, the involvement of the Director of Public Prosecutions, etc.) which delays the registration of such deaths in time for inclusion in this Annual Report. The CSO publishes tables of late registered deaths (see Appendix 2019) which form part of this report, to ascertain numbers of deaths registered late from intentional self-harm. The 2019 Appendix includes late registered deaths from intentional self-harm that were registered in 2019 but refer to the year that the death occurred i.e. 2017 and prior. See Tables 3.C and 3.D.
For example, there were 134 additional deaths from intentional self-harm that were registered in 2019 but occurred in 2017 and prior. 117 (87.3%) of these occurred in 2017 while 8 (6.0%) occurred in 2016. The remaining 6.7% occurred in earlier years. Of these 134 deaths, nearly three-quarters were male (95, or 70.9%). The late registered suicide deaths that occurred in 2019 will be included in the Appendix in the Vital Statistics Annual Report for 2021. Due to the delay in registering such deaths, the number of deaths from suicide is a provisional figure, and is updated annually following Coroner verdicts.
Example:
Deaths from intentional self-harm in 2017 published in the 2017 annual report: = 383
Males 310
Females 73
Additional deaths from intentional self-harm which occurred in 2017 and were registered in 2019 = 117
Bringing total to: = 500
Subtotal: Males 310 + 81 = 391
Females 73 + 36 = 109
See Appendix Table 3.D
The 500 is a provisional figure as it can be added to as necessary when deaths that occurred in 2017 are published in subsequent Annual Reports. The late registered deaths 2020 will be included in that year’s Annual Report. These additional recorded deaths from intentional self-harm are updated annually on the CSO databank tables VSD33 and VSD34.
Events of undetermined intent accounted for an additional 18 deaths in 2019. See Tables 3.15, 3.16.
Limerick City recorded the highest age-standardised death rates for external causes of injury and poisoning, 0.7 per 1,000 population while Fingal recorded the lowest at 0.1 per 1,000 population. See Table 3.8.
The number of deaths on certificates issued by coroners as a result of inquest and post-mortem examinations during 2019 was 4,697 compared with 4,794 in 2018 and 4,588 in 2017.
For deaths coding methodology, see Technical Notes.
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