CDC WONDER Mortality Data

General Overview

The DDRC has exported all drug and opioid overdose mortality data for 17 states from the CDC WONDER System. This export spans from 2010 to 2022 and includes detailed demographic information. The following document outlines the DDRC has acquired, identifies the relevant ICD-10 codes, and provides a comprehensive data dictionary to aid in data interpretation. This dataset is intended to support research and analysis efforts aimed at addressing the drug and opioid crisis across the region.

The data provided is based on information available from CDC WONDER at the time of download. Please note that this data may be updated or corrected without notice as new information becomes available.

Overview of CDC WONDER System

The WONDER system provides data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS), managed by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). WONDER aims to increase access to crucial public health-related data. It includes nationwide mortality statistics that can be searched using various criteria, such as time (e.g., year, month), location (e.g., state, county), and demographic variables (e.g., age range, sex, ethnicity, race). The searchable data generates aggregates, offering a comprehensive overview based on the specified search criteria.

Data Use Guidelines and Confidentiality Standards

Data from CDC WONDER is subject to the CDC’s Data Use and Restrictions. Users are prohibited from linking this data to other datasets to identify individuals or establishments. Any inadvertent discovery of such identities must not be disclosed and should be reported to the CDC. 

To protect confidentiality, CDC WONDER suppresses statistics representing nine or fewer (i.e., less than 10) deaths. The CDC strictly prohibits any attempts to determine or infer suppressed values. 

We comply with these terms and expect that any third parties accessing or using data from the DDRC will do the same.

Understanding Mortality Causes and ICD-10

Mortality causes are defined using the International Classification of Diseases 10th Revision (ICD-10). However, WONDER includes specialized codes for deaths caused by terrorism, which are not part of the ICD-10 classification system. For more information on the ICD-10 CM system, please refer to the CDC’s ICD-10 CM page. Additionally, there are limitations to the WONDER data. As the ICD has undergone multiple revisions to reflect changes in diseases and causes of death, older data categorized under previous ICD versions, such as ICD-9, may be inconsistent with newer data. Some causes of death listed in older ICD versions may no longer exist in the updated classifications.

Acquiring CDC WONDER Mortality Data

The DDRC used the CDC WONDER Multiple Cause of Death query tool to extract mortality data from 2010 to 2022 for the 17 DDRC states. This extraction included base variables such as year and state for both all-drug and opioid-related mortality. Additional queries were made for other key variables, such as age, county, gender, ethnicity, and race. Each of these variables is stored in its own unique dataset with the base variables.

To identify overdose-related deaths, we used ICD-10 codes X40–X44, X60–X64, X85, and Y10–Y14. For opioid-related overdose deaths, these codes were supplemented with ICD-10 codes T40.0–T40.4 and T40.6, which specifically denote opioid overdoses.

Technical Assistance

Detailed information on the query used to extract the CDC WONDER data, as well as the export, transform, and loading (ETL) processes, can be found on the corresponding Technical Assistance page.

DDRC Data Dictionary for Overdose Mortality Data from CDC WONDER

We developed a combined data dictionary using CDC’s data dictionary and disclosure information to accurately reflect the data we exported. Each CDC WONDER export includes a description of the exported data, and we used this information to provide additional context where appropriate. This combined data dictionary includes:

• Details from the Multiple Cause of Death 1999 - 2020 Data Summary Description, with additional explanations added for clarity.

• Information from the Multiple Cause of Death by Single Race 2018 - 2022 Data Summary Description, also enhanced with supplementary details for better understanding.

This combined dictionary provides a comprehensive overview of the dataset we exported from CDC WONDER, ensuring that all relevant data and context are clearly documented. We still recommend that users review and reference the CDC WONDER tool for the most detailed and up-to-date information.

The DDRC's data dictionary for the exported CDC WONDER data can be found here [INSERT LINK].