Question

What is the difference between mortality rates and morbidity rates (or what is morality and morbidity)?

Answer 1

Morbidity is the condition of being ill, diseased, or unhealthy. This can include acute illnesses (which have a sudden onset and improve or worsen in a short period of time), as well as chronic illnesses (which can present and progress slowly over a long period of time). An example of acute illness can be the flu, a broken arm, or a heart attack. Chronic illnesses are more like diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), or cancer. A person can live for several years with one or more morbidities. One morbidity may lead to another morbidity.

Mortality, on the other hand, is the condition of being dead. You usually hear of mortality in terms of the number of deaths in a population over time, either in general or due to a specific cause. It’s important to recognize that morbidities may or may not lead to mortality. As an example, one could have terminal lung cancer but died of injuries after a road accident.