[Regional Deprivation in Germany: Nation-wide Analysis of its Association with Mortality Using the German Index of Multiple Deprivation (GIMD)].

BACKGROUND

Deprivation indices are increasingly being used to assess the effects of contextual factors on health. In Germany, the recently developed 'German Index of Multiple Deprivation (GIMD)' integrates various dimensions of regional deprivation. We aim to assess the validity of the GIMD through a recalculation using more recent rural and urban district level data and by analysing its association with mortality at the national level.

METHODS

We calculated a new version of the GIMD based on data from 2007 to 2010 for all 412 rural and urban districts in Germany. Mortality was quantified using indirectly standardised mortality ratios (SMRs). Correlation analyses and Poisson regression analyses were used to assess the association between the GIMD scores and total mortality, as well as premature mortality (< 65 years).

RESULTS

Correlation analyses showed a positive association between the GIMD and both total mortality (p<0.001) and premature mortality (p<0.001). In the Poisson regression analyses, rural and urban districts in the quintile with the highest deprivation showed a significantly elevated risk of total mortality (RR: 1.29; 95% CI: 1.28-1.30) as well as premature mortality (RR: 1.50; 95% CI: 1.47-1.53), compared to the districts in the lowest quintile.

CONCLUSION

The association between regional deprivation and mortality has already been shown for the federal state of Bavaria. Using more recent data, this relationship could be confirmed here for Germany as a whole. The GIMD has been shown to be able to effectively assess regional deprivation. Concerning public health policy, the significant, positive and stable association between regional deprivation and mortality indicates an increased need for health care provision particularly in the most deprived districts. Further studies should examine, for example, whether and how the allocation of districts to quintiles of regional deprivation changes over time, and how this affects mortality.