Extremely Low Birth Weight and Infant Mortality Rates in the United States

PEDIATRICS ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 131 (5) ◽  
pp. X3-X3
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Birth Weight ◽  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Extremely Low Birth Weight

Extremely Low Birth Weight and Infant Mortality Rates in the United States

PEDIATRICS ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 131 (5) ◽  
pp. 855-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Lau ◽  
N. Ambalavanan ◽  
H. Chakraborty ◽  
M. S. Wingate ◽  
W. A. Carlo
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Birth Weight ◽  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Extremely Low Birth Weight

Infectious Disease-Related Deaths of Low Birth Weight Infants, United States, 1968 to 1982

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 84 (2) ◽  
pp. 296-303
Author(s):  
Janine M. Jason
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
United States ◽  
Birth Weight ◽  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Mortality Data ◽  
Tract Infections

Infant mortality rates in the United States are higher than in any other developed country. Low birth weight (LBW) is the primary determinant of infant mortality. Despite city, state, and federal programs to prevent LBW, decreases in infant mortality in the 1980s appear to be largely secondary to improved survival of LBW infants rather than to a decline in the rate of LBW births. Because prevention of mortality due to infectious disease is feasible, it was of interest to examine the role of infectious diseases in LBW infant mortality. US vital statistics mortality data for 1968 through 1982 were analyzed in terms of LBW infant mortality associated with infectious and noninfectious diseases. These analyses indicated that the rates of infectious disease-associated early neonatal and postneonatal LBW mortality increased during this time; late neonatal rates did not decline appreciably. Infectious diseases were associated with 4% of all LBW infant deaths in 1968; this had increased to 10% by 1982. Although LBW infant mortality rates associated with noninfectious diseases did not differ for white and black populations, infectious disease-associated mortality rates were consistently higher for blacks than whites in both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. Chorioamnionitis was involved in 28% of infectious disease-associated early neonatal LBW deaths. Sepsis was an increasingly listed cause of death in all infant age periods, whereas respiratory tract infections were decreasingly listed. Necrotizing enterocolitis increased as a cause of late neonatal mortality. These data suggest that infectious diseases are an increasing cause of LBW infant mortality and these deaths occur more frequently in the black population targeted by prevention programs. More research concerning specific causes and prevention of infections in the LBW infant may help reduce US infant mortality.

Medical Management of Extremely Low-Birth-Weight Infants in the First Week of Life: A Survey of Practices in the United States

2009 ◽  
Vol 26 (06) ◽  
pp. 407-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Autumn Kiefer ◽  
Andrea Wickremasinghe ◽  
Jonathan Johnson ◽  
Tyler Hartman ◽  
Susan Hintz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Birth Weight ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
Medical Management ◽  
The United States ◽  
Extremely Low Birth Weight ◽  
Low Birth Weight Infants

scholarly journals Birth weight-specific survival curves for extremely low birth weight infants in the United States † 1137

1998 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
pp. 195-195
Author(s):  
Jaideep K Singh ◽  
Babak Khoshnood ◽  
Sudhir Sriram ◽  
Steven Wall ◽  
Hui-Lung Hsieh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Birth Weight ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
The United States ◽  
Extremely Low Birth Weight ◽  
Survival Curves ◽  
Low Birth Weight Infants

Low Birth Weight, Vital Records, and Infant Mortality

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 1143-1145
Author(s):  
MYRON E. WEGMAN
Keyword(s):  
Birth Weight ◽  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
Very Low Birth Weight ◽  
The United States ◽  
Low Birth Weight Infants ◽  
Neonatal Deaths ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Almost All

About one tenth of all infant deaths occur in babies weighing less than 500 g at birth, almost all of whom die very shortly thereafter. In 1983, when the United States reported 3,638,933 live births, 4,368 of them were less than 500 g; that year there were 26,507 neonatal deaths. This means that slightly more than 0.1% of all live births contributed to 17% of neonatal mortality. Given this order of magnitude, any change in the numbers relating to these tiny babies can have a disproportionate influence on reported infant mortality and on interstate comparisons. Two questions promptly arise. How accurate and meaningful are the data regarding babies born weighing less than 500 g? What can be done to decrease the deaths in this category? Wilson et al1 call attention to how the number of very low birth weight infants reported by a state may be affected by the state's definition of a live birth.

EARLY NEONATAL MORTALITY

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1979 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
pp. 645-645
Author(s):  
R. H. R.
Keyword(s):  
Birth Weight ◽  
Low Birth Weight ◽  
Medical Technology ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Good News ◽  
Low Birth Weight Infants ◽  
Low Birth Weight Infant ◽  
Early Neonatal Mortality ◽  
Substantial Decline

The United States has had a substantial decline in infant mortality rates. Mortality rates for low birth weight infants remained fairly stable prior to 1965, but have "decreased sharply" since then. The decrease in mortality among these infants accounted for more than half of the overall fall. The most likely explanation is the development and proliferation of medical technology for management of the low birth weight infant. Comment: Nice to hear some good news of what we are doing well. Regionalization and intensive care do make a difference.

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