State mortality · CDC NCHS 2017
Louisiana - Mortality Statistics
34,521 deaths in 2017 across 10 tracked causes, at a state average age-adjusted rate of 66.1 per 100,000.
Data updated 2017-12-31
- 34,521
- Deaths, 2017
- Heart disease
- Leading cause
- +19%
- vs national avg
- 66.1
- Avg age-adj /100K
Build your own comparison
Side-by-side state comparisons and cause lookups use the same CDC NCHS figures shown on this page. Results stay in the URL so you can bookmark or share them.
Higher mean age-adjusted rate
What this means: Louisiana sits in the top third of jurisdictions by mean age-adjusted rate across leading causes (66.1/100K; corpus #8 of 51). A modest gap above the national rate is common and not necessarily alarming on its own, but it's worth pairing with the trend below to see whether the state is closing the gap or widening it.
Higher-rate third on mean age-adjusted leading causes (2017). Heart disease leads the 2017 file. Rates are CDC WONDER age-adjusted; see /methodology#corpus-placement.
Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death (CDC NCHS / NVSS), 2017. Age-adjusted rates allow fair comparison across states.
FIPS 22 · CDC WONDER 2017
Louisiana at a glance
2017: 34,521 deaths across 10 tracked causes at 66.1/100K mean age-adjusted · corpus #8/51 · 19% above US avg. Nearest rate peer: Tennessee (+0.3/100K).
Louisiana in the higher-rate third
In 2017, CDC WONDER tallied 34,521 deaths in Louisiana across 10 tracked cause-of-death categories. Heart disease led the record with 11,260 deaths at an age-adjusted rate of 214.4 per 100,000, placing Louisiana at #5 of 51 states for this cause, where a higher rank corresponds to a higher rate. The top five causes accounted for 28,480 deaths (82.5% of the state total). Among jurisdictions with published CDC WONDER leading-cause files, that mean rate lands in the higher third.
A modest gap above the national rate is common and not necessarily alarming on its own, but it's worth pairing with the trend below to see whether the state is closing the gap or widening it.
Mean-rate neighbourhood around Louisiana
Leading Causes of Death, Top 5
The five leading causes account for 28,480 deaths (82.5% of all deaths) in Louisiana.
The Complete 2017 Cause List for Louisiana
| # | Cause of death | Deaths | % of total | Age-adj /100K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heart disease | 11,260 | 32.6% | 214.4 |
| 2 | Cancer | 9,513 | 27.6% | 174.9 |
| 3 | Unintentional injuries | 2,780 | 8.1% | 58.9 |
| 4 | CLRD | 2,467 | 7.1% | 46.6 |
| 5 | Stroke | 2,460 | 7.1% | 47.4 |
| 6 | Alzheimer's disease | 2,188 | 6.3% | 43.7 |
| 7 | Diabetes | 1,272 | 3.7% | 23.9 |
| 8 | Kidney disease | 1,076 | 3.1% | 20.6 |
| 9 | Influenza and pneumonia | 785 | 2.3% | 15.1 |
| 10 | Suicide | 720 | 2.1% | 15.2 |
Do the biggest causes also carry the highest rate in Louisiana?
10 causes of death in Louisiana plotted by total deaths against the age-adjusted rate per 100,000. Death count and age-adjusted rate move together across Louisiana's causes (r=1.00) -- the causes with the most deaths here also tend to carry the highest per-capita rate.
Causes of death in Louisiana by deaths and age-adjusted rate: Heart disease, 11260 deaths, 214.4 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Cancer, 9513 deaths, 174.9 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Unintentional injuries, 2780 deaths, 58.9 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. CLRD, 2467 deaths, 46.6 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Stroke, 2460 deaths, 47.4 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Alzheimer's disease, 2188 deaths, 43.7 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Diabetes, 1272 deaths, 23.9 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Kidney disease, 1076 deaths, 20.6 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Influenza and pneumonia, 785 deaths, 15.1 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Suicide, 720 deaths, 15.2 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate.
The Trend Line Behind This Data
Show the full 19-year data table (deaths, rate, year-over-year change)
| Year | Total Deaths | Avg Age-Adj Rate | Deaths YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 32,460 | 80.7 | - |
| 2000 | 32,117 | 78.8 | -1.1% |
| 2001 | 32,539 | 79.1 | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 32,355 | 77.8 | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 32,903 | 78.1 | +1.7% |
| 2004 | 32,234 | 75.6 | -2.0% |
| 2005 | 33,492 | 77.3 | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 30,400 | 72.6 | -9.2% |
| 2007 | 30,286 | 71.0 | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 31,247 | 71.6 | +3.2% |
| 2009 | 30,474 | 68.5 | -2.5% |
| 2010 | 30,553 | 67.7 | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 30,344 | 65.5 | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 31,059 | 65.6 | +2.4% |
| 2013 | 31,887 | 65.8 | +2.7% |
| 2014 | 32,571 | 66.1 | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 32,950 | 65.6 | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 33,414 | 65.3 | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 34,521 | 66.1 | +3.3% |
Nearby States & Comparisons
Compare mortality data with states bordering Louisiana (2017).
| State | Deaths (Top Cause) | Leading Cause | Age-Adj Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Louisiana (this state) | 11,260 | Heart disease | 214.4 |
| Arkansas | 8,270 | Heart disease | 223.8 |
| Mississippi | 7,944 | Heart disease | 231.6 |
| Texas | 45,346 | Heart disease | 169.2 |
States with similar CDC WONDER rates
Two non-border peer sets for Louisiana in 2017, drawn from the higher-rate third's nearest neighbors on published age-adjusted rates. Border neighbors stay in the table above.
States near this mean leading-cause rate
Nearest jurisdictions by mean age-adjusted rate across leading causes (66.1/100K here), excluding bordering states.
Peer states by suicide rate (X60-X84)
Nearest jurisdictions by suicide age-adjusted rate, excluding the mean-rate peer set and bordering states.
Data source & methodology
Rates are per 100,000 population. Age-adjusted rates use the year 2000 US standard population. Data covers 1999-2017. Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death (CDC NCHS / NVSS).
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
According to the CDC National Center for Health Statistics, PlainHealthData's mortality figures are rendered directly from 9,690 official state-year-cause records (NCHS Leading Causes of Death for calendar years 1999-2017). June 2026 is when this portal last verified that frozen CDC file is intact; it is not a newer claims year. No figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, our data changelog, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of 2017.