350 



Harry Auerbach 



representing the acute causes of death, a similar exponential increase with age 

 was apparent (Fig. 3b). 



It therefore appears that the death process in man can be separated broadly 





o 

 o 

 o 



20 



(A) 



30 



40 



50 60 

 AGE 



70 



80 



90 



2000 



(B) 



Fig. 3. a. Typical semi-log plots of acute portions of 1000^^ (total minus 

 chronic), for four of the countries tested, b. Semi-log plot of death rate per 

 100,000 population from acute causes of death (total minus chronic), for United 



States white males, 1949-1951. 



into chronic degenerative causes and acute causes, with death from the degenera- 

 tive causes increasing as the sixth power of age and death from the acute 

 causes increasing in simple exponential fashion. 



Total and specific causes of death have previously been fitted by the Gom- 

 pertzian or semi-log plot (4). However, it would appear from this work that 

 the degenerative causes increase with age not at a constant rate of increase as 

 predicted by the Gompertzian, and are therefore better fitted by the log-log 



