The authors compared all-cause & cause-specific mortality in a sample of physicians to the age-gender matched U.S. populations from 1948 through 1998. They also compared the mortality experience across medical specialties. The risk of all-cause mortality was 56% lower than expected in men, & 26% lower in women, compared to the general population. Suicide was the only cause of death where risk was greater than the general population. Implications for future research are discussed. (33 refs)