Medical Technology and Life Expectancy: Evidence From the Antitoxin Treatment of Diphtheria

Philipp Ager, Casper Hansen and Peter Z. Lin ()

CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series from University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany

Abstract: We study the impact of the first effective medical treatment for an infectious disease—diphtheria antitoxin—on the historical health transition in the United States. Using an instrumental variable for local antitoxin adoption rates and information from approximately 1.6 million death certificates from 1880 to 1914, we find that the rapid diffusion of antitoxin led to a substantial decline in diphtheria mortality rates and increased life expectancy at birth. Exposure to antitoxin also significantly reduced school absenteeism. Overall, our results suggest that medicine played a more important role in increasing life expectancy in the early 20th century than previously thought.

Keywords: Life expectancy; medical technology; antitoxin (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I15 J11 N32 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 66
Date: 2024-11
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea and nep-his
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Related works:
Working Paper: Medical Technology and Life Expectancy: Evidence from the Antitoxin Treatment of Diphtheria (2023)
Working Paper: Medical Technology and Life Expectancy: Evidence from the Antitoxin Treatment of Diphtheria (2023)
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