目的　通过专题调查描述我国居民死亡医学证明书中对多死因填写的状况。方法　对我国四个死因点1997年 15 317例死亡的死因实际填写情况进行审核后归纳、汇总并计算有关指标。结果　死亡原因的平均报告情况数为 1 72 ,有随死亡组年龄增加而上升的趋势。根本死因为循环系病、慢性下呼吸道疾病和糖尿病的平均编码数为 1 70以上。在前 10位死因中 ,不同程度地伴有其他影响居民健康的疾病。结论　对多数死亡不宜用一种死因来描述 ,应逐渐采用多死因分析方法以便更深入地观察和阐述多种疾病同时存在时对居民健康的影响。 Objective To describe the status of multiple deaths in medical records of deaths in Chinese residents through special investigations. Methods After the actual death of 15 317 death cases in 1997, the four death causes in China were reviewed and summarized, and relevant indicators were calculated. Results The average number of reported causes of death was 1,72, which increased with the age of the death group. He died because the average number of circulatory diseases, chronic lower respiratory diseases, and diabetes was 1 70 or more. Among the top 10 causes of death, there are other diseases that affect the health of residents. Conclusion For most deaths, it is not appropriate to describe a cause of death. Multi-causal analysis should be adopted gradually in order to more deeply observe and elaborate the impact on the health of residents when multiple diseases coexist.