Time trends and determinants of infant mortality in Thi-Qar 2016-2017

Abstract

Rationale:

A large proportion of child deaths had been  accounted from neonatal deaths. Mortality during neonatal period is considered a useful indicator of both maternal and newborn health and care.

Aim of the study:

This study aimed  to know the magnitude of IM, assessment of its distribution and knowing of its main determinants

Subjects and method

A cross sectional observational study extending all over the past 2 years; from January  2106 till the end of august of 2017 in Bint Al-Huda maternity and pediatrics hospital-Thiqar-Iraq, through which 1188 deaths had been included, where  age by days, sex,date of death, address, day by the week, word,  time of inward admission, cause of death and lastly comorbid condition. Frequencies, percentages, figures, chi-square test, fisher exact test, Univariet  and mulivarient analysis  had  been used in order to reach the proposed aims. P value of less than 0.05 consider as significant.

Results:

The  study involve 1188 infant deaths, distributed according to their early, late and post neonatal life (69%, 10%,21%)respectively,IMR were higher among male than females. Winter and autumn at 2016 were the higher seasons of death, while Summer of 2017 register the highest death rate among infants,

There was no significant statistical association between the death number and percentages and the day of death regarding their ordinal  distribution with in the week (p>0.05).According to the 20^th months of the study; January, February and October of 2016 were the highest months of IM registration, while the July of 2017 was the highest month of death for the infants, there was no significant statistical association between sex distribution and place of residence of died infants, and also no sex difference regarding the days of weeks at which the infants died .

the respiratory causes (52.1%)  constituting the highest rate fallowed by septicemia (18.1%), while the well-known  infectious diseases  and endocrine diseases  representing the lesser cause specific fatality rate (0.08%). There was a highly significant statistical association  between causes of death season of the year (P <0.0001) age (P <0.0001). Residence of died infant showing significant statistical association with the causes of death (p 0.011)

Conclusion: Early neonatal life representing the highest proportion of death risk than other infantile life period, Male having more mortality rate at age of less than 1 year of age,  days of weeks had no significant difference in occurrence of death among infants,  seasonal variation of death had been noticed. 5-respiratory causes and septicemia were the major killers. 6.age, place of residence and seasons had significant statistical association with cause of death