Mortality rates in rural and urban areas of Brittany

Relative differences in environment, behaviour, social composition as well as access to health care tend to suggest that levels of health may vary between urban and rural areas. The aim of this study was to identify rural-urban variations in mortality risks in the region of Brittany for the period from 1988 to 1992. The definition of urban and rural areas used adhered to that of the zoning of urban areas established by the INSEE (the National Statistical Office). The amalgamation of all causes of standardised mortality ratios (SMR) show only a moderately increased risk in the rural areas compared with the overall regional level (+4% in men, +5-7% in women). The analysis of cause specific SMRs display higher rural mortality for cardiovascular diseases and external causes of death, road traffic accidents in particular (+24% in men). Among all specific causes investigated, only lung cancer mortality risk appears to be higher in urban areas.