Objective To analyze the mortality trend of chronic respiratory diseases (CRD) among residents aged ≤70 years old in Qinghai province from 2015 to 2022, thus providing a basis for improving the prevention and control strategies of CRD.

Methods The mortality data were collected from the Death Information Registration and Reporting System of Qinghai Province for the individuals aged ≤ 70 years old, with the underlying cause of death attributed to CRD from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2022. Descriptive analysis was conducted via the number of deaths, crude mortality, and standardized mortality. The Joinpoint model was adopted to calculate the average annual percentage change (AAPC) to analyze the mortality trend of CRD among residents aged ≤ 70 years old in Qinghai province.

Results The crude mortality of CRD among residents aged ≤ 70 years old in Qinghai province increased from 20.46/10⁵ in 2015 to 24.27/10⁵ in 2022, while the standardized mortality decreased from 32.38/10⁵ in 2015 to 31.59/10⁵ in 2022. However, both the trends showed no statistically significant differences (all P > 0.05). The crude mortality of CRD varied among residents aged ≤70 years in different gender, age, and region groups across different years (all P < 0.05). Among the residents with different characteristics aged ≤ 70 years old, the crude mortality of CRD in rural areas increased from 21.45/10⁵ in 2015 to 31.59/10⁵ in 2022. The crude mortality of CRD showed an upward trend from 2015 to 2022 (AAPC = 4.44%, t = 2.76, P = 0.03).

Conclusions From 2015 to 2022, the mortality of CRD among rural residents aged ≤ 70 years old in Qinghai province showed an upward trend. Rural areas, pastoral areas, and elderly male residents are the key areas and population for the prevention and control of CRD.