Mortality differences according to marital status among men and women in Kuwait

Higher mortality among unmarried persons compared with currently married ones has been reported in many previous studies. There is paucity of such studies in developing countries. We analysed the association between marital status and mortality in Kuwait, an oil-rich Gulf Muslim country. Data were o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Asian population studies 2014-09, Vol.10 (3), p.241-251
Main Authors: Shah, Nasra M., Thalib, Lukman, Al-Ateeqi, Abdulaziz
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age differences
Correlation analysis
Death & dying
Death rate
Demography
Developing countries
Disability
Divorce
Gender differences
Gender differentiation
Health problems
Kuwait
LDCs
Marital status
Marriage
Mental depression
Mortality
Mortality rates
Muslims
Petroleum
Physical disabilities
Population characteristics
Population dynamics
Public health
Sex differences
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Summary:Higher mortality among unmarried persons compared with currently married ones has been reported in many previous studies. There is paucity of such studies in developing countries. We analysed the association between marital status and mortality in Kuwait, an oil-rich Gulf Muslim country. Data were obtained from the Public Authority for Civil Information that has maintained a linked record database of population characteristics with death notifications since 2005. Deaths during 2005-2010 were aggregated for the analysis. Age-specific death rates and standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated according to marital status (married, never married, divorced and widowed), age (15-49, 50-64 and 65+), gender, and nationality (Kuwaiti vs. non-Kuwaiti). Among Kuwaiti nationals, the SMRs for widowed, divorced, and never married were 1.75, 1.68 and 1.15 compared to the married. Higher mortality was found among unmarried men and women at almost all ages. These findings may be indicative of considerable public health problems such as higher disability and depression among the unmarried.
ISSN:1744-1730
1744-1749
DOI:10.1080/17441730.2014.942944