Dynamics of Population Age Structure and Mortality in Iran: Proposing a New Method for Adjusting Mortality Rates

This study is an attempt to extend the application of the direct standardization method of mortality rates, so that in addition to standardizing crude death rates, age-specific rates are also standardized based of time. Using the Ministry of Health and Medical Education registry data, age-specific mortality rates are calculated based on the all and main causes of death in 2006 and 2015 at the national level. The findings of standardized age-specific rates for the year 2015 indicate that the effect of age structure changes on age-specific mortality rates for all and the main causes of death, especially in middle and older ages, has been largely increasing. The only exception in this case was deaths from unintentional accidents at ages 15 to 24, with the age structure changes displaying a declining effect. Given the continuing process of age structure change toward older ages, it is important to consider the potential impact of age structure on mortality in policy-making and its barriers to reducing mortality rates.