Health-adjusted potential years of life lost due to treatable causes of death and illness

Background Summary measures based on potential years of life lost (PYLL) to death and to illness would complement population health measures such as health-adjusted life expectancy. These measures can be applied to deaths and to conditions that are considered amenable to treatment by the health care system. Data and methods Life tables for 2007 to 2009 were used to calculate health-adjusted potential years of life lost (HAPYLL) for males and females from birth to age 75 for Canada and the provinces. Mortality rates for all causes were adjusted using the Health Utility Index 3 (HUI3) as a measure of the average value of a year in ill health. Average HUI3 was calculated for each age group for selected health conditions self-reported in the 2009/2010 Canadian Community Health Survey. HAPYLL was estimated by adding the average number of years lost due to treatable causes of death (treatable PYLL) to the average number of years lost because of ill health (HUI3 gap). Results More years of life are lost because of ill health than are lost because of premature death. During the 2007-to-2009 period, age-/sex-standardized PYLL due to treatable causes of death was 1,257 years lost per 100,000 person-years, while the age-/sex-standardized HUI3 gap was 6,477 years. Provincial rankings change when information on deaths is combined with information on ill health. Interpretation The impact of treatable conditions is greater in terms of quality of life lost than in life-years lost.