However, among certain populations use of these databases alone may provide incomplete information.ĭetermination of mortality status is an important part of epidemiological studies and many clinical research investigations. The results of this study suggest that Internet sources may be used as an inexpensive and effective tool for determination of mortality status. Gender and marital status were not significant factors for identification by the SSA Death Master File. Foreign-born decedents were significantly less likely to be identified as dead than American-born decedents. Resultsĭecedents identified by the SSA Death Master File were significantly older than those not identified. The authors used the SSA Death Master File to determine the mortality status of 374 decedents from the ongoing Patient Outcomes Study at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center whose deaths were confirmed by physicians using hospital records. Internet sources that use the Social Security Administration's (SSA) Death Master File have demonstrated high sensitivity among males for detection of mortality status in comparisons to the National Death Index, but the sensitivity has not been investigated for other demographic groups.
