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To elucidate the temporal trends in occupation-specific all-cause and cause-specific mortalities in Japan between 1980 and 2005, when Japan experienced its most serious post-war economic crisis.
Methods
We analyzed death certificate data with information on the last job before death in Japan among men aged 30 to 59 years old. We computed age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) for all causes, all cancers, cerebrovascular disease, ischemic heart disease, unintentional injuries, and suicide.
Results
ASMRs for all causes and the four leading causes of death (i.e. cancers, ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and unintentional injuries) have steadily decreased from 1980 to 2005 among all occupations except for management and professional workers, for whom ASMRs began to rise in the late 1990s. During the study period, production/labour, clerical, and sales workers achieved the lowest mortality rate, although overall ASMR variability across occupations widened. The ASMR for suicide among the population has rapidly increased since the late 1990s. Nevertheless, production/labour, clerical, and sales workers did not show any increase in suicide ASMR.
Discussion
Japanese occupation-specific mortality trends are very different from those in Western countries. In Japan, the variability of mortality by occupation continuously widened between 1980 and 2005. The occupation-specific pattern changed particularly noticeably after the late 1990s, with no further reduction in mortality among managers and professionals. However, production/labour, clerical, and sales workers, who represent the largest share of the male population, were strongly protected even in the period of economic crisis. Suicide, showing the unprecedented increase in mortality since the late 1990s, with dramatic changes in its occupational patterns, should have the highest priority as a public health target for the working age population.