Survival is better indicator than mortality in geographic comparisons of health

Editor—I have thought for some time that the way in which mortality and the risks of death are reported can give a misleading impression. Wise's news item about a report on premature deaths in Britain confirms my worries.1 2 In any comparison of mortality (or any other statistics), if the denominator is a small number and getting smaller over time then, even if the numerator is unchanged, the effects over time can suggest dramatic change. For example, …