Open AccessInternational infant mortality rates: bias from reporting differences.
Author(s) -
Embry Howell,
Béatrice Blondel
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.84.5.850
Subject(s) - infant mortality , medicine , international comparisons , demography , perinatal mortality , pediatrics , environmental health , pregnancy , population , fetus , pathology , sociology , biology , genetics
International infant mortality statistics have caused concern in the United States, since the US ranking relative to other developed countries has declined since World War II. This paper suggests that there may be international differences in reporting of very-low-birthweight infants and perinatal deaths and that such reporting differences bias comparisons of national perinatal and infant mortality rates. Efforts must be made to adopt standard conventions for the inclusion of small, early infants and fetal deaths in rate calculations.