How to Calculate Years of Life Lost

Years of life lost (YLL) or years of potential life lost (YPLL) are typically used as population-based mortality indicators, measuring the difference between age of death and a predetermined end point. You can easily calculate YPLL for a group or for a single person, using just a few key data points.

Instructions

• 1

  Gather age of mortality data for a determined population. This data can be from a local health department, newspaper, city record, or age of mortality for family members. Create a list or spreadsheet of this data, to easily use during your calculations.

• 2

  Choose a predetermined end point age. The Center for Health Statistics Information for Local Health Officers states that 75 years is the predetermined end point age used by the National Center for Health Statistics, though 65 years was used until 1996.

• 3

  Create a table with two columns. The left-hand column will read "Age of Death" and the right-hand column will read "YPLL." Use your data to enter all age of mortality data into separate rows in the left-hand column.

• 4

  Use a calculator to find the YPLL for each data point. Subtract age of mortality from your predetermined end point. For example, if your predetermined end point was 75 years and a person died at age 17, the YPLL would equal 75 years - 17 years = 58 YPLL.

• 5

  Add individual YPLL together to find the population Years of Potential Life Lost.