There was a 5.3 per cent increase in the number of deaths in Ireland in the first quarter of this year when compared to the same period in 2016, new statistics show.
Figures published by the Central Statistics Office show there were just over 9,000 deaths between January and March, an increase of 458 on the same months in 2016.
The increasing death rate was not driven by a spike in any one particular cause of death, but rather by incremental changes across different categories.
Diseases of the heart and arteries was the most common cause of death over the period, with 2,643 such deaths recorded at a rate of 2.3 per 1,000 population, and malignant cancers killed more than 2,500 people.
The CSO said the rise was is considered usual for a country with an ageing population dynamic such as Ireland.
There were 68 confirmed suicides between January and March, down from 73 in the same months last year.
Births
The number of births remained virtually unchanged at almost 16,500, leaving a natural population increase of 7,420 over the three months, 450 fewer than between January and March last year.
There were some 370 more boys born than girls, according to the first set of vital statistics for this year, and almost two-thirds of births were registered by married parents.
The overall rate of marriage stayed at 3 per 1,000 of population with 3,481 unions recorded.
The number of same-sex marriages dropped to 142 from 183 when compared to the same period last year. A high-point was reached in the third quarter of 2016 when 353 same-sex marriages were recorded following the Marriage Equality referendum a year earlier.