DOCSLIB.ORG

2018 Infant Mortality and Selected Birth Characteristics

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
2018 Infant Mortality and Selected Birth Characteristics OCTOBER 2020 Infant Mortality and Selected Birth Characteristics 2019 South Carolina Residence Data and Environmental Control Vital Statistics CR-012142 11/19 Executive Summary Infant mortality, defined as the death of a live-born baby before his or her first birthday, reflects the overall state of a population’s health. The infant mortality rate is the number of babies who died during the first year of life for every 1,000 live births. The South Carolina (SC) Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) collects and monitors infant mortality data to improve the health of mothers and babies in our state. In 2019, there were 391 infants who died during the first year of life. While the most recent national data shows that the US infant mortality rate in 2018 (5.7 infant deaths per 1,000 live births)1 surpassed the Healthy People (HP) 2020 Goal of no more than 6.0 infant deaths per 1,000 live births2, the SC infant mortality rate is still higher than the HP target despite a decrease of 4.2% from 7.2 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2018 to 6.9 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2019. The racial disparity for infant mortality remains a concern in SC, and the gap is now at its widest point in 5 years (see Figure 1 below). The infant mortality rate among births to minority women remained moderately constant from 2018 to 2019 (11.1 and 11.2, respectively) while the infant mortality rate among births to white mothers decreased 9.8% from 5.1 in 2018 to 4.6 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2019. Trend in Infant Mortality, by Race: 2015-2019 Rate per 1,000 live births 12 11.1 11.2 11.2 10.0 10 9.0 8 7.0 7.0 6.5 7.2 6.9 6 5.5 5.2 4.8 5.1 4.6 4 2.3 2.4 1.8 2.2 2 1.7 0 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Total Black & Other White Racial Disparity Source: SC DHEC Vital Statistics The 2019 infant mortality rate in the neonatal (less than 28 days after birth) period decreased 6.3% overall, which was mostly driven by an 14.7% decrease in the neonatal infant mortality rate among births to white women. Infant mortality rates in the postneonatal (28-365 days after birth) period remained unchanged from 2018 to 2019 among births to white and minority women. The top leading causes of infant death overall in 2019 were disorders related to short gestation and low birthweight, birth defects, maternal complications of pregnancy, accidents, and sudden infant death syndrome. The number of infant deaths due to preterm or low birthweight increased 17.2% from 2018 to 2019. A 43.5% increase was seen in the number of deaths where the infant was affected by maternal complications of pregnancy. And the number of infant deaths due to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) increased by 35.7% (Table 8-C). Sudden unexpected infant death, or SUID, is defined as the sudden and unexpected death of a baby less than 1 year old in which the cause was not obvious before an investigation is conducted. Most of these deaths occur while the baby is sleeping or in his or her sleep area. SUIDs include accidental suffocation or strangulation in an unsafe environment, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and deaths from unspecified or unknown causes. Although the number of deaths from accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed decreased by 13.3% from 2018 (34 deaths) to 2019 (27 deaths), the number of SIDS deaths in SC increased from 14 deaths in 2018 to 19 deaths in 2019 (Table 10). The American Academy of Pediatrics updated their policy on safe sleeping in 2016, and DHEC has recently taken the lead on development of new, uniform safe sleep messaging to incorporate these recommendations in collaboration with the SC Birth Outcomes Initiative directive. DHEC is committed to improving the health of women and infants before, during, and after pregnancy. The agency continues to partner with organizations such as the SC Hospital Association, SC Department of Health and Human Services, and SC Chapter of the March of Dimes to explore and implement innovative strategies that promote improved pregnancy and health outcomes for mothers, babies, and families in our state. SC participates in the Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network, or CoIIN, led by the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs, using the science of quality improvement and collaborative learning to reduce infant mortality as well as disparities in infant mortality by addressing social determinants of health, focusing on policy recommendations. Several other practices and programs that address infant mortality in SC include hospital and physician emphasis on patient care quality and safety; evidence-based maternal and infant home visitation programs; postpartum newborn home visits; research and education; and the SC Birth Defects Program. DHEC staff and partners work diligently to give all babies their best chance to live a healthy and long life. References: 1. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK. Births in the United States, 2018. NCHS Data Brief, no 346. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019. 2. Healthy People 2020. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Retrieved from https://www.healthypeople.gov/node/3492/objectives#4825. 3. AAP TASK FORCE ON SUDDEN INFANT DEATH SYNDROME. SIDS and Other Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2016 Recommendations for a Safe Infant Sleeping Environment. Pediatrics. 2016;138(5):e20162938 South Carolina Infant Mortality Rates1 by Race2 Residence Data, 2000-2019 25 58135 38459 2015 58,135405* 7 38459 185 4.8 19611 219 11.2 ##### 0 4.8 20 15 10 2015 58,135265* 4.6 38459 121 3.1 19611 143 7.3 Rates per 1,000 Live Births 5 0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2015 140 2.4 19611 76 3.9 All Races White Black & Other 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 All Races 8.7 8.9 9.3 8.3 9.3 9.5 8.4 8.5 8.0 7.1 7.4 7.4 7.6 6.9 6.5 7.0 7.0 6.5 7.2 6.9 White 5.4 5.8 5.9 5.9 6.7 7.0 5.7 6.2 6.1 5.2 5.5 5.0 5.3 5.5 4.7 4.8 5.5 5.2 5.1 4.6 Black & Other 14.2 14.5 15.4 12.8 14.1 14.3 13.2 12.9 11.4 10.5 10.9 11.8 11.9 9.5 9.9 11.2 10.0 9.0 11.1 11.2 1Rates per 1,000 live births 2Race of mother Source: SC DHEC, Vital Statistics Table 1. Infant Mortality Rates1 with 95% Confidence Intervals2 South Carolina, 2000-2019 (Residence Data) Number Number Infant 95% Year of Live of Infant Mortality Confidence Births Deaths Rate Intervals 2000 55,964 488 8.7 (7.9, 9.5) 2001 55,748 496 8.9 (8.1, 9.7) 2002 54,453 507 9.3 (8.5, 10.1) 2003 55,461 463 8.3 (7.5, 9.1) 2004 56,543 524 9.3 (8.5, 10.1) 2005 57,538 549 9.5 (8.7, 10.3) 2006 62,191 520 8.4 (7.6, 9.1) 2007 62,933 538 8.5 (7.8, 9.3) 2008 63,077 504 8.0 (7.3, 8.7) 2009 60,682 430 7.1 (6.4, 7.8) 2010 58,325 430 7.4 (6.7, 8.1) 2011 57,338 423 7.4 (6.7, 8.1) 2012 57,100 435 7.6 (6.9, 8.3) 2013 56,743 389 6.9 (6.2, 7.6) 2014 57,631 372 6.5 (5.8, 7.2) 2015 58,135 405 7.0 (6.3, 7.7) 2016 57,337 401 7.0 (6.3, 7.7) 2017 57,030 371 6.5 (5.8, 7.2) 2018 56,668 406 7.2 (6.5, 7.9) 2019 57,044 391 6.9 (6.2, 7.6) Table 2. Infant Mortality Rates1 with 95% Confidence Intervals2 South Carolina 2000-2004, 2005-2009, 2010-2014, 2015-2019 (Residence Data) Number Number Infant 95% Years of Live of Infant Mortality Confidence Births Deaths Rate Intervals 2000-2004 278,169 2,478 8.9 (8.6, 9.3) 2005-2009 306,421 2,541 8.3 (8.0, 8.6) 2010-2014 287,137 2,049 7.1 (6.8, 7.4) 2015-2019 286,214 1,974 6.9 (6.6, 7.2) 1Rates per 1,000 live births 2 r ± 61.981 (r/n)1/2, where r = infant mortality rate and n = number of live births Source: SC DHEC, Vital Statistics Table 3. Infant, Neonatal and Postneonatal Mortality and Mortality Rates1 by Race2 South Carolina 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 (Residence Data) Infant Mortality Total White Black & Other Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of Year Live Births Infant Deaths Rate Live Births Infant Deaths Rate Live Births Infant Deaths Rate 2015 58,135* 405* 7.0 38,459 185 4.8 19,611 219 11.2 2016 57,337* 401 7.0 38,264 210 5.5 19,025 191 10.0 2017 57,030* 371* 6.5 37,601 196 5.2 19,385 174 9.0 2018 56,668* 406 7.2 37,334 192 5.1 19,277 214 11.1 2019 57,044* 391 6.9 37,434 172 4.6 19,525 219 11.2 Neonatal Mortality (<28 days) Total White Black & Other Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of Year Live Births Infant Deaths Rate Live Births Infant Deaths Rate Live Births Infant Deaths Rate 2015 58,135* 265* 4.6 38,459 121 3.1 19,611 143 7.3 2016 57,337* 253 4.4 38,264 117 3.1 19,025 136 7.1 2017 57,030* 239* 4.2 37,601 121 3.2 19,385 117 6.0 2018 56,668* 272 4.8 37,334 128 3.4 19,277 144 7.5 2019 57,044* 256 4.5 37,434 109 2.9 19,525 147 7.5 Postneonatal Mortality (28-364 days) Total White Black & Other Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of Number of Year Live Births Infant Deaths Rate Live Births Infant Deaths Rate Live Births Infant Deaths Rate 2015 58,135* 140 2.4 38,459 64 1.7 19,611 76 3.9 2016 57,337* 148 2.6 38,264 93 2.4 19,025 55 2.9 2017 57,030* 132 2.3 37,601 75 2.0 19,385 57 2.9 2018 56,668* 134 2.4 37,334 64 1.7 19,277 70 3.6 2019 57,044* 135 2.4 37,434 63 1.7 19,525 72 3.7 1Rates per 1,000 live births 2Race of mother *Includes unknown race Source: SC DHEC, Vital Statistics Table 4.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Classification of Cell Death
    Cell Death and Differentiation (2005) 12, 1463–1467 & 2005 Nature Publishing Group All rights reserved 1350-9047/05 $30.00 www.nature.com/cdd News and Commentary Classification of cell death: recommendations of the Nomenclature Committee on Cell Death G Kroemer*,1, WS El-Deiry2, P Golstein3, ME Peter4, D Vaux5, with or without, caspase activation and that ‘autophagic cell P Vandenabeele6, B Zhivotovsky7, MV Blagosklonny8, death’ represents a type of cell death with (but not necessarily W Malorni9, RA Knight10, M Piacentini11, S Nagata12 and through) autophagic vacuolization. This article details the G Melino10,13 2005 recommendations of NCCD. Over time, molecular definitions are expected to emerge for those forms of cell 1 CNRS-UMR8125, Institut Gustave Roussy, 39 rue Camille-Desmoulins, death that remain descriptive. F-94805 Villejuif, France 2 University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA Preface 3 Centre d’Immunologie INSERM/CNRS/Universite de la Mediterranee de Marseille-Luminy, Case 906, Avenue de Luminy, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, It is obvious that clear definitions of objects that are only France shadows in Plato’s cage are difficult to be achieved. Cell death 4 The Ben May Institute for Cancer Research, University of Chicago, 924 E 57th and the different subroutines leading to cell death do not Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA 5 escape this rule. Even worse, the notion of death is strongly Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3RE, influenced by religious and cultural beliefs, which may UK 6 Molecular Signalling and Cell Death Unit, Department for Molecular Biomedical subliminally influence the scientific view of cell death.
    [Show full text]
  • Guidelines for Determining Death Based on Neurological Criteria
    GUIDELINES FOR DETERMINING DEATH BASED ON NEUROLOGICAL CRITERIA New Jersey 2014 1 These guidelines have been drafted by the New Jersey Ad Hoc Committee on Declaration of Death by Neurologic Criteria, under the leadership of Dr. John Halperin, M.D. and William Reitsma, RN. We are grateful for the hard work and knowledgeable input of each of the following medical, legal and health care professionals. The authors gratefully acknowledge the work of the New York State Department of Health and the New York State Task Force on Life and the Law, and the guidelines for Brain Death Determination they promulgated in 2011. This document provides the foundation for these guidelines. John J. Halperin, M.D., FAAN, FACP Medical Director, Atlantic Neuroscience Institute Chair, Department of Neurosciences Overlook Medical Center Summit, NJ Alan Sori, M.D., FACS Director of Surgical Quality, Saint Joseph's Regional Medical Center Paterson, NJ Bruce J. Grossman, M.D. Director of Pediatric Transport Services Pediatric Intensivist K. Hovnanian Children’s Hospital at Jersey Shore University Medical Center Neptune, NJ Gregory J. Rokosz, D.O., J.D., FACEP Sr. Vice President for Medical and Academic Affairs/CMO Saint Barnabas Medical Center Livingston, NJ Christina Strong, Esq. Law Office of Christina W. Strong Belle Mead, NJ 2 GUIDELINES FOR DETERMINING DEATH BASED ON NEUROLOGICAL CRITERIA BACKGROUND This document provides guidance for determining death by neurological criteria (commonly referred to as “brain death”), aims to increase knowledge amongst health care practitioners about the clinical evaluation of death determined by neurological criteria and reduce the potential for variation in brain death determination policies and practices amongst facilities and practitioners within the State of New Jersey.
    [Show full text]
  • Death & Decomposition Part II
    Death & Decomposition Part II Review: Why is TSD/PMI so important? Review: What happens in the Fresh (1st) Stage of Decomposition? STAGE 2: Bloat ⦿ 0-10 days ⦿ Putrefaction: bacterially-induced destruction of soft tissue and gas formation › Skin blisters and marbling › Build-up of fluids from ruptured cells and intestines Putrefaction – the gross stuff ➢ Decomposition that occurs as a result of bacteria and other microorganisms ➢ Results in gradual dissolution of solid tissue into gases and liquids, and salts Putrefaction ➢ Characteristics: ○ Greenish discoloration ○ Darkening of the face ○ Bloating and formation of liquid or gas-filled blisters ○ Skin slippage Putrefaction ➢ Begins about 36 hours after death ➢ Further destruction is caused by maggots and insects ➢ Above 40 F, insects will feed until the body is skeletonized Influences of Putrefaction ➢ Heavy clothing and other coverings speed up the process by holding in body heat ➢ Injuries to the body surface promote putrefaction ○ provide portals of entry for bacteria Marbling Stage 3: Active Decay ➢ 10-20 days after death ➢ Body begins to collapse and black surfaces are exposed ➢ Bloated body collapses and leaves a flattened body ➢ Body fluids drain from body Active Decay Active Decay: Destruction of Tissue • Severe decomp can result in complete destruction of soft tissue Active Decay: Advanced Decomposition Stage 4: Dry Decay ➢ 20-365 days after death ➢ Remaining flesh on body is removed and body dries out ➢ Body is dry and continues to decay very slowly due to lack of moisture ➢
    [Show full text]
  • Grief Support Resources
    grief support resources 24/7 crisis hotline The Light Beyond: thelightbeyond.com The Harris Center: 713-970-7000 A forum, short movie, blog, e-cards and library to support those in grief. web sites: Bo’s Place: bosplace.org UNITE: unitegriefsupport.org A bereavement center offering grief support services to Offers a number of services to grieving parents and children, ages 3 to 18, and their families who have caregivers including the following: grief support experienced the death of a child or an adult in their groups, literature, educational programs, training workshops, immediate family, as well as programs for grieving group development assistance and referral assistance. adults. Bo’s Place is founded on the belief that grieving children sharing their experiences with each other infant specific: greatly helps in their grief journey. Bo’s Place is located March of Dimes: marchofdimes.com in Houston, TX and has employees that speak Spanish. The mission of the March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature MISS Foundation: missfoundation.org birth and infant mortality. The organization carries out its A volunteer-based organization committed to providing mission through research, community services, education crisis support and long-term aid to families after the and advocacy to save babies’ lives. March of Dimes death of a child from any cause. MISS also participates researchers, volunteers, educators, outreach workers and in legislative and advocacy issues, community advocates work together to give all babies a fighting engagement and volunteerism and culturally chance against the threats to their health: prematurity, competent, multidisciplinary, education opportunities.
    [Show full text]
  • Life After Death and the Devastation of the Grave
    In Michael Martin and Keith Augustine, eds., The Myth of an Afterlife: The Case Against Life After Death, Rowman & Littlefield 2015. Life After Death and the Devastation of the Grave Eric T. Olson 1. Life After Death One of the fundamental questions of human existence is whether there is life after death. If we had an oracle willing to answer just one philosophical question by saying “Yes” or “No,” this is the one that many of us would ask. Not being an oracle, I am unable to tell you whether there is an afterlife. But I can say something about whether there could be. Is it even possible? Or is the hope that we have life after death as vain as the hope that we might find the largest prime number? One way to think about whether there could be life after death is to ask what would have to be the case for us to have it. If it were possible, how might it be accomplished? Suppose you wanted to know whether it was possible for a hu- man being to visit another galaxy and return to earth. To answer this question, you would need to know what such a journey would involve. What sort of spaceship or other means of transport would it require? How fast would it have to go, and how long would the journey take? Only once you knew such things would you be able to work out whether it could possibly be done. In the same way, we need to know what our having life after death would require in order to see whether it is possible.
    [Show full text]
  • No Autopsies on COVID-19 Deaths: a Missed Opportunity and the Lockdown of Science
    Journal of Clinical Medicine Review No Autopsies on COVID-19 Deaths: A Missed Opportunity and the Lockdown of Science 1, 2, 3 1 1 Monica Salerno y, Francesco Sessa y , Amalia Piscopo , Angelo Montana , Marco Torrisi , Federico Patanè 1, Paolo Murabito 4, Giovanni Li Volti 5,* and Cristoforo Pomara 1,* 1 Department of Medical, Surgical and Advanced Technologies “G.F. Ingrassia”, University of Catania, 95121 Catania, Italy; [email protected] (M.S.); [email protected] (A.M.); [email protected] (M.T.); [email protected] (F.P.) 2 Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71122 Foggia, Italy; [email protected] 3 Department of Law, Forensic Medicine, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy; [email protected] 4 Department of General surgery and medical-surgical specialties, University of Catania, 95121 Catania, Italy; [email protected] 5 Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, University of Catania, 95121 Catania, Italy * Correspondence: [email protected] (G.L.V.); [email protected] (C.P.); Tel.: +39-095-478-1357 or +39-339-304-6369 (G.L.V.); +39-095-378-2153 or +39-333-246-6148 (C.P.) These authors contributed equally to this work. y Received: 12 March 2020; Accepted: 13 May 2020; Published: 14 May 2020 Abstract: Background: The current outbreak of COVID-19 infection, which started in Wuhan, Hubei province, China, in December 2019, is an ongoing challenge and a significant threat to public health requiring surveillance, prompt diagnosis, and research efforts to understand a new, emergent, and unknown pathogen and to develop effective therapies.
    [Show full text]
  • Preventing Infant and Maternal Mortality: State Policy Options
    HEALTH Preventing Infant and Maternal Mortality: State Policy Options APRIL | 2019 Preventing Infant and Maternal Mortality: State Policy Options BY AMBER BELLAZAIRE AND ERIK SKINNER The National Conference of State Legislatures is the bipartisan organization dedicated to serving the lawmakers and staffs of the nation’s 50 states, its commonwealths and territories. NCSL provides research, technical assistance and opportunities for policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues, and is an effective and respected advocate for the interests of the states in the American federal system. Its objectives are: • Improve the quality and effectiveness of state legislatures • Promote policy innovation and communication among state legislatures • Ensure state legislatures a strong, cohesive voice in the federal system The conference operates from offices in Denver, Colorado and Washington, D.C. NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF STATE LEGISLATURES © 2019 NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF STATE LEGISLATURES ii Introduction Preventing infant and maternal death continues to be a pressing charge for states. State lawmakers rec- ognize the human, societal and financial costs of infant and maternal mortality and seek to address these perennial problems. This brief presents factors contributing to infant and maternal death and provides state-level solutions and policy options. Also provided are examples of how states are using data to identify opportunities for evidence-based interventions, determine evidence-based policies that help reduce U.S. infant and maternal mortality rates, and improve overall health and well-being. A National Problem After decades of decline, the maternal mortality rate in the United States has increased over the last 10 years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), between 800 and 900 women in the United States die each year from pregnancy-related complications, illnesses or events.
    [Show full text]
  • Guideline Completion of Death Certificates
    Department of Health Center for Health Statistics Guideline Revised – 2/23/17 Title: Completion of Death Certificates Number: CHS D-10 References: RCW 70.58.170 Contact: Daniel O’Neill, Senior Policy Analyst Phone: 360-236-4311 Email: [email protected] Effective Date: February 23, 2017 Approved By: Christie Spice The Department of Health provides this guideline for medical certifiers of death certificates. Medical certifiers include allopathic and osteopathic physicians, physician assistants, advanced registered nurse practitioners, chiropractors, coroners and medical examiners to follow when completing death certificates. The Department receives complaints that health care providers fail to complete death certificates in a timely manner or fail to accurately list the cause of death on the death certificate. The death certificate provides important information about the decedent and the cause of death. Death certification errors are common and range from minor to severe. Under RCW 70.58.170, a funeral director or person having the right to control the disposition of human remains must present the death certificate to the medical certifier last in attendance upon the deceased. The medical certifier then has two business days to certify the cause of death according to his or her best knowledge and sign or electronically approve the certificate, unless there is good cause for not doing so. The medical certifier should register cause and manner of death information through the Washington State Electronic Death Reporting System (EDRS). The EDRS facilitates timely registration of the death and rapid collection of cause and manner of death information. The EDRS can be found at https://fortress.wa.gov/doh/edrs/EDRS/.
    [Show full text]
  • The Decline in Child Mortality: a Reappraisal Omar B
    Theme Papers The decline in child mortality: a reappraisal Omar B. Ahmad,1 Alan D. Lopez,2 & Mie Inoue3 The present paper examines, describes and documents country-specific trends in under-five mortality rates (i.e., mortality among children under five years of age) in the 1990s. Our analysis updates previous studies by UNICEF, the World Bank and the United Nations. It identifies countries and WHO regions where sustained improvement has occurred and those where setbacks are evident. A consistent series of estimates of under-five mortality rate is provided and an indication is given of historical trends during the period 1950–2000 for both developed and developing countries. It is estimated that 10.5 million children aged 0–4 years died in 1999, about 2.2 million or 17.5% fewer than a decade earlier. On average about 15% of newborn children in Africa are expected to die before reaching their fifth birthday. The corresponding figures for many other parts of the developing world are in the range 3–8% and that for Europe is under 2%. During the 1990s the decline in child mortality decelerated in all the WHO regions except the Western Pacific but there is no widespread evidence of rising child mortality rates. At the country level there are exceptions in southern Africa where the prevalence of HIV is extremely high and in Asia where a few countries are beset by economic difficulties. The slowdown in the rate of decline is of particular concern in Africa and South-East Asia because it is occurring at relatively high levels of mortality, and in countries experiencing severe economic dislocation.
    [Show full text]
  • Cross-Country Evidence on the Association Between Contact Tracing
    www.nature.com/scientificreports OPEN Cross‑country evidence on the association between contact tracing and COVID‑19 case fatality rates Abdullah Yalaman1*, Gokce Basbug2, Ceyhun Elgin3 & Alison P. Galvani4 The coronavirus disease (COVID‑19) outbreak has killed over a million people since its emergence in late 2019. However, there has been substantial variability in the policies and intensity of diagnostic eforts between countries. In this paper, we quantitatively evaluate the association between national contact tracing policies and case fatality rates of COVID‑19 in 138 countries. Our regression analyses indicate that countries that implement comprehensive contact tracing have signifcantly lower case fatality rates. This association of contact tracing policy and case fatality rates is robust in our longitudinal regression models, even after controlling for the number of tests conducted and non‑ pharmaceutical control measures adopted by governments. Our results suggest that comprehensive contact tracing is instrumental not only to curtailing transmission but also to reducing case fatality rates. Contact tracing achieves the early detection and isolation of secondary cases which are particularly important given that the peak in infectiousness occurs during the presymptomatic phase. The early detection achieved by contact tracing accelerates the rate at which infected individuals receive medical care they need to maximize their chance of recovery. In addition, the combination of reduced transmission and more rapid recovery diminishes the burden on the healthcare system which in turn ensures that the resources remain available for individuals who do become infected. Te ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak has spread to 213 countries and territories, causing more than 47,000,000 cases and over 1.2 million deaths as of November 2020.
    [Show full text]
  • MAIN CAUSES of MORTALITY Over 5 200 000 People Died in EU Countries in 2015 Diseases, Followed by Pneumonia (See Indicator (Figure 3.7)
    II.3. HEALTH STATUS MAIN CAUSES OF MORTALITY Over 5 200 000 people died in EU countries in 2015 diseases, followed by pneumonia (see indicator (Figure 3.7). An unusual large increase in the number of “Mortality from respiratory diseases”). deaths in 2015 explains the reduction in life External causes of death, which include accidents, expectancy in many countries compared with 2014 (see suicides, homicides and other violent causes of death, indicator “Trends in life expectancy”). The higher were responsible for 3% of all deaths among women and number of deaths in 2015 across EU countries was 6% of deaths among men in EU countries in 2015. The concentrated mainly among people aged 75 and over, most important causes of violent deaths are road traffic and was attributed mainly to higher mortality from accidents and other accidental deaths, and suicides. influenza and pneumonia triggering cardiorespiratory Road traffic accidents are a particularly important cause events, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, and of death among young people (aged 18-25), whereas heart diseases. suicide rates generally increase with age. Slightly more women than men died across EU More than 80% of all deaths in EU countries occur countries in 2015, as there are more women in the after the age of 65. While the main cause of death population, particularly in older age groups. Once the among people aged over 65 is circulatory diseases, the population structure is adjusted by age, the age- main cause for people under 65 is cancer, particularly standardised mortality rate was about 50% higher among women (Eurostat, 2018).
    [Show full text]
  • World Mortality Report 2007
    ST/ESA/SER.A/289 Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division World Mortality Report 2007 United Nations New York, 2011 DESA The Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat is a vital interface between global policies in the economic, social and environmental spheres and national action. The Department works in three main interlinked areas: (i) it compiles, generates and analyses a wide range of economic, social and environmental data and information on which Member States of the United Nations draw to review common problems and take stock of policy options; (ii) it facilitates the negotiations of Member States in many intergovernmental bodies on joint courses of action to address ongoing or emerging global challenges; and (iii) it advises interested Governments on the ways and means of translating policy frameworks developed in United Nations conferences and summits into programmes at the country level and, through technical assistance, helps build national capacities. Note The designations employed in this report and the material presented in it do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of capital letters combined with figures. This publication has been issued without formal editing. Suggested citation: United Nations, Department
    [Show full text]