Neighborhood socioeconomic status is linked to premature mortality

Low neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with premature mortality, according to a study published online August 8 JAMA network opened.

Wayne R. Lawrence, Dr.PH, of the National Institutes of Health in Rockville, Maryland, and colleagues examined the association between neighborhood life-course SES and premature mortality in a cohort study of 12,610 black and white participants (25.2 and 74 .8 percent, respectively) from the multicenter Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study. Participants were followed for an average of 18.8 years between 1996 and 2020.

The researchers observed an association for the lowest versus the highest tertile of neighborhood SES score in middle adulthood with a higher risk of premature death (hazard ratio, 1.28; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.07 to 1.54) . Similar associations were seen for neighborhood SES in young adulthood among women and for neighborhood SES in childhood among white participants (hazard ratios [95 percent confidence intervals]1.25 [1.00 to 1.56] and 1.25 [1.01 to 1.56]respectively). An increased risk of premature death was observed among participants whose neighborhood SES remained low from young to middle adulthood, compared with those whose neighborhood SES remained high (hazard ratio, 1.25; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.05 to 1.49).

“Future studies aimed at identifying place-based interventions that target neighborhood social determinants of health should be designed from a life course perspective that takes into account socio-economic inequality in early life, as this is a crucial pathway to reduce premature mortality alleviate,” the authors write.

One author disclosed ties to the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation; a second author received grants from the Krueger vs. Wyeth class action lawsuit.

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