title: Variations in disease prevalence in the Americas.
abstract: Data are presented from North American and Latin American countries of the leading causes of death and death rates, demonstrating the sharp differences based on social and economic development of these respective countries. Whereas ischemic heart disease and malignant neoplasms head the list of deaths in the United States and Canada, infective and parasitic diseases of the gut, with diarrhea very common, are the principal causes of death in Latin America. Nutritional deficiency, the most important contributory cause associated with infections and diarrhea, accounts for the very high infant mortality rate in the latter countries. These pathologic conditions have a direct relationship to the degree of social and economic level of development in Latin America, and constitute a complex public health problem of enormous proportions.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007226:Infant Mortality; D008875:Middle Aged; D009017:Morbidity; D009026:Mortality; D009656:North America; D013020:South America