A new research letter published by JAMA Pediatrics examined trends in overall and cause-specific infant mortality rates between non-Hispanic black and white infants because infant mortality is an important indicator of population health.
Corinne A. Riddell, Ph.D., of McGill University, Montreal, Canada, and coauthors analyzed data from the U.S. National Vital Statistics System from 2005 to 2015. The infant mortality rate was calculated as the number of deaths divided by the number of births. Rates for the top four causes of death also were calculated.
The authors report:
"The sustained progress in reducing infant mortality among black infants since 2005 has stalled in the past few years. This has led to increases in the absolute inequality in infant mortality between black and white infants during the past three years. Interventions to further reduce the rate of preterm birth among black infants appear the most promising option for reducing black infant mortality and the absolute inequality between black and white infants," the authors conclude.
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(doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2017.1365)
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JAMA Pediatrics