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Eliminate Disparities
in Infant Mortality
What is the Burden of Infant Mortality?
Infant
mortality is used to compare the health and well-being of populations
across and within countries. The infant mortality rate, the rate at which
babies less than one year of age die, has continued to steadily decline over the past
several decades, from 26.0 per 1,000 live births in 1960 to 6.9 per 1,000 live
births in 2000. The United States
ranked 28th in the world in infant mortality in
1998.1 This ranking is due in large part to disparities
which continue to exist among
various racial and ethnic groups in this country, particularly African
Americans.2
Examples of Important Disparities
Infant mortality among African Americans in 2000
occurred at a rate
of 14.1 deaths
per 1,000 live births.2 This is
more than twice the national average of 6.9 deaths
per 1,000 live births. The leading causes of infant death include
congenital abnormalities, pre-term/low birth weight, Sudden
Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), problems related to complications of pregnancy,
and respiratory distress syndrome.3 SIDS deaths among American Indian and Alaska
Natives is 2.3 times the
rate for non-Hispanic white mothers.4
What is the Goal?
By the year 2010, the goal is to eliminate disparities among
racial and ethnic
groups with infant mortality rates above the national average, including
American Indian, Alaska Native, and Puerto Rican populations. Public health
agencies will also continue to monitor infant mortality trends for all racial
and ethnic groups.
Promising
Strategies
Focus on modifying the behaviors, lifestyles, and conditions that affect
birth outcomes, such as smoking, substance abuse, poor nutrition, lack of
prenatal care, medical problems, and chronic illness. Public health agencies
including CDC/ATSDR, health care providers, and communities of all ethnic groups must
partner to improve the infant mortality rate in the United States. This joint
approach should address the behaviors, lifestyles, and conditions that affect
birth outcomes. Substantial investments have been made in consultation,
research, and service delivery to reduce disparities in access to health care and
health status. The plan to reduce infant mortality rates includes:
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A network between health care experts and minority
communities to encourage healthy behaviors by pregnant women and parents
of infants. |
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Research that will determine the cause of SIDS, develop
effective strategies to identify at-risk infants more precisely, and
create effective interventions for high-risk infants. |
What can Healthcare Providers do to Help Reduce
Infant Mortality Rates?
Health care providers should advise their patients about factors that
affect birth outcomes, such as maternal smoking, drug and alcohol abuse, poor
nutrition, stress, insufficient prenatal care, chronic illness or other medical
problems.
What can Communities and Individuals do to Help Reduce Infant Mortality
Rates?
Communities can play an important role in this effort by encouraging
pregnant women to seek prenatal care in the first trimester, which will ensure a
better birth outcome than little or no prenatal care. Parents and
caregivers should place sleeping infants on their backs and reduce bed sharing. Research has demonstrated that babies who slept on their stomachs were at a higher risk for SIDS.5
For more information
about infant mortality:
Sources:
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