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Maternal & Child Health > Needs Assessment > Neonatal Mortality Fact Sheet Neonatal Mortality Fact Sheet

Definition: Neonatal mortality is the number of babies who die during the first 28 days of life per 1,000 live births based on the birth cohort.

Healthy People 2010 Goal:

  • 2.9 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Consequences:

  • Neonatal mortality reflects the health of the newborn and reflects the health status and treatment of the pregnant mother and baby after birth.

Causes:

  • The leading causes of neonatal deaths are birth defects, disorders related to short gestation and low birth weight, respiratory distress syndrome, and maternal complication of pregnancy.

Prevalence:

Table 1:   2002 Neonatal Mortality Rates: Indiana

Live Births

Neonatal Deaths

Neonatal Death Rates

All Races

84,839

441

5.2

White

74,013

329

4.4

Black

9,243

91

9.8

Other

1,583

21

13.3

Hispanic

6,145

38

6.2

Source: Indiana State Department of Health

Trends in Neonatal Mortality:

  • Black neonatal infants are two times more likely to die than white neonatal infants.
  • Between 1999 and 2002, the overall neonatal mortality remained the same. White and black neonatal mortality rates decreased slightly, but were still short of meeting the Healthy People 2010 goal of 2.9 deaths per 1,000 live births (See below).

 

Neonatal Mortality Rate Charts
Source: Indiana State Department of Health

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