The number of deaths in the A.C. of the Basque Country in 2001 came to 18,087, 9,670 males and 8,417 females, 155 fewer deaths than the year before. This figure represents a 0.8% decrease with regard to 2000, according to EUSTAT data.

440 deaths more than births occurred by which, as had been the case since 1990, the natural population growth in the Community was negative. By provinces, there were positive balances in Álava and Gipuzkoa, which gained 217 and 311 persons, respectively. In the case of Bizkaia, the cause of the negative population growth in the Community was that the number of deaths was considerably higher than that of births (-968).

The average age of the deceased was 75.3 years, while in 1990 it was 71 years, i.e. there was a 4.3 years increase. By sex, the average age of death for males was 71.4 years and for women was 79.9, although a trend was observed to decrease in this difference between sexes. A result of this difference is that up to the age of 80 double the number of males die to that of females, while from the age of 80 the trend is reversed.

With regard to infant mortality, 3.4 under one year olds died per thousand births. The neonatal mortality rate, deaths in the first 28 days of life, recorded 44 deaths; 30 were due to early neonatal mortality, occurring in the first week, 12 during the first 24 hours. Among the under one year olds, there were more deaths among males (36) than females (24).

31.8% of the deaths that occurred in 2001, 5,743, were due to circulatory system diseases; followed by tumours, with 30.4% (5,496 deaths), and respiratory diseases in third place, at some distance, representing 9.12% (1,649).

The cause of death was different according to sex, as among males tumours were more common than circulatory system diseases, while among females the main cause of death was cardiovascular diseases, followed by tumours.

In addition, the cause of death varied with age. Among under one year olds, the most frequent deaths were death to diseases that originated in the perinatal period and congenital anomalies; up to the age of 34 the main causes of death were external; from 35 to 74 it was tumours and from the age of 75 it was circulatory system diseases.

Among deaths by external causes the most important were road accidents with 245 deaths and suicides with 152. In both cases more men died than women: 187 males and 58 females from road accidents and 102 males and 50 females from suicides.