Clayton Valley Grad Plays Key Role in Groundbreaking Mortality Study Published in New England Journal of Medicine.

CONCORD, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--July 9, 1999--

Natalie M. Ryan, a Concord native and recent graduate of University of California at San Diego (UCSD), played a critical role in the groundbreaking Mortality research study published this week in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) (http://www.nejm.org).

The Special Article, "An Increase in the Number of Deaths in the United States in the First Week of the Month: An Association with Substance Abuse and Other Causes of Death," is featured in the July 8th edition of the NEJM. The specific URL for the article is: http://www.nejm.org/content/1999/0341/0002/0093.asp

The study analyzed all computerized death certificates in the U.S. from 1973 through 1988. Submitted by David P. Phillips, Ph.D., Nicholas Christenfeld, Ph.D., and Natalie M. Ryan, B.A., the authors conclude that, "In the U.S., the number of deaths is higher in the first week of the month than in the last week of the preceding month. The increase at the beginning of the month is associated with substance abuse and other causes of death." And the data shows that this "boundary effect" was stronger within nonwhite populations.

The study provides the first major documentation that will certainly impact ongoing policy debate in the fields of government welfare policy, mental heath, and the substance abuse treatment and social welfare communities. The NEJM Special Article was covered closely by the New York Times and has since received widespread attention from other leading national media and major dailies.

Ms. Ryan, a graduate of Clayton Valley High School, class of 1995, graduated magna cum laude from UCSD this June, receiving her B.A. in Sociology with high distinction. Ryan served as a research assistant to Phillips and Christenfeld -- also at UCSD -- and was the first to see that suicides were abnormally frequent at the beginning of the month. The more general peaks at the beginning of the month and drops in mortality at the end of the month were identified by Phillips.

"There would not have been a study without Natalie's work," notes Phillips, professor of Sociology at UCSD. "I would not have looked for the general pattern if Natalie had not found the peak in suicides at the beginning of the month." Phillips frequently co-publishes with undergraduates including papers in leading journals including Science, Lancet, The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), and NEJM. Ms. Ryan currently resides in San Diego, CA and continues her research.

Note to Editors: Photo available upon request in hi-resolution JPEG format