Book Chapter

IDL, the International Database on Longevity

Robine, J.-M., Cournil, A., Gampe, J., Vaupel, J. W.
In: Society of Actuaries (Ed.): Living to 100 and beyond
Orlando, FL, Society of Actuaries (2005)

Abstract

Since the first symposium, "Living to 100 and Beyond: Survival at Advanced Ages," held in 2002, a collaborative effort has been made to assemble an international database on longevity, gathering validated longevity records for people having reached at least their 110th birthday. More than 15 countries, including the United States of America, Canada and Japan, along with European countries, have been participating in this "supercentenarian" project. Collaboration with national statistical offices or health departments has allowed the investigators to obtain complete lists of alleged supercentenarians in most countries. Different validation processes were then undertaken by the participating teams. By March 2004, more than 500 validated records had been gathered. This paper first evaluates the quality of data according to several criteria, such as the country of residence or the validation process undertaken, and then provides an estimation of the mortality trajectory up to age 114.
The Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) in Rostock is one of the leading demographic research centers in the world. It's part of the Max Planck Society, the internationally renowned German research society.