Child Health USA 2005

Health Status > Infants

INFANT MORTALITY

In 2003, 28,428 infants died before their first birthday, representing an infant mortality rate of 6.9 deaths per 1,000 live births. The leading cause of infant mortality was congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities, which accounted for 20 percent of infant deaths.

The infant mortality rate declined from the 1960s into this century, but increased slightly between 2001 and 2002. This was largely due to an increase in the percentage of infants born weighing less than 750 grams, reasons for which include a rise in both preterm and multiple births. The rapid decline in infant mortality that began in the mid-1960s slowed among both Blacks and Whites during the 1980s. Major advances, including the approval of synthetic surfactants and the recommendation that infants be placed on their backs when sleeping, may have contributed to a renewed decline during the 1990s.

Based on preliminary data, the mortality rate among Black infants was 14.1 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2003. This is almost two and one-half times the rate among non-Hispanic White infants (5.8 per 1,000 live births). Although the trend in infant mortality rates among both Blacks and non-Hispanic Whites has generally declined throughout the last century, the proportional discrepancy in rates between the two races remains largely unchanged.

The Maternal and Child Health Block Grant and the MCHB’s Healthy Start Program provide health and support services to pregnant women and infants with the goal of reducing infant mortality rates.

Back to top

Child Health USA 2005 is not copyrighted. Readers are free to duplicate and use all or part of the information contained on this page. Suggested Citation: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Child Health USA 2005. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2005.