title: Evolution of educational inequalities in mortality among young adults in an urban setting.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To gain insight into the evolution in educational inequalities in adolescent and young adult all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the urban setting of the Brussels-Capital Region.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were derived from record linkage between the censuses of 1991 and 2001 and register data on all-cause and cause-specific mortality and emigration in the respective periods of 1st October 1991 to 1st January 1996 and 1st October 2001 to 1st January 2006. Both directly and indirectly standardised mortality rates and the relative index of inequality (RII) were computed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mortality rates among adolescents and young adults have dropped significantly, especially infections and traffic accidents. However, educational inequalities among men have slightly increased: men with a maximum primary education are four times more likely to die than those who are higher educated [RII = 4.09 (2.78-6.03)]. Among women, no social gradient is observed in either period, but a clear split between the lowest educated and other educational groups is apparent in the 2000s.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a positive evolution towards lower mortality among adolescents and young adults, but educational inequalities remain a public health concern.
authors.affiliation: Interface Demography, Department of Sociology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 5, 1050, Brussels (Elsene), Belgium, hannelore.de.grande@vub.ac.be.
authors.forename: Hannelore
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: De Grande
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Deboosere
authors.forename: Hadewijch
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Vandenheede
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001530:Belgium / Q000453:epidemiology; D002423:Cause of Death; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult