Bio-demographic factors affecting child loss in Tanzania

A Sathiya Susuman,Hamisi F Hamisi,R Nagarajan

doi:10.1186/s41118-016-0013-z

A Sathiya Susuman, Hamisi F Hamisi + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-016-0013-z

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Abstract

The Republic of Tanzania has been experiencing one of the highest infant and child mortality rates. There have been few efforts in understanding the bio-demographic factors associated with child loss. The 2011–2012 Tanzania HIV/AIDS and Malaria Indicator Survey is the third comprehensive survey on HIV/AIDS carried out in Tanzania. This study employed logistic regression ratios to estimate the effects of key bio-demographic variables on the outcome variable (child loss). Children who belonged to mothers with parity 4 to 8 and more than 9 had 1.27 and 1.08 times more risk of dying, respectively, compared to children in parity less than 3. Birth interval is one of the most important key factors to reduce child mortality. A birth spacing of 24 months or longer was observed in the successive birth interval of 76 % of the respondents. Special health care service fund allocation is essential to reduce child mortality in Tanzania. There is no doubt that the funding from international donor agencies and global partnerships will be important to the country’s progress toward reducing infant, child, and maternal mortality.

Highlights

Bio-demography is an interdisciplinary approach to demography in which biological considerations are emphasized: the study of the influence of biological factors on demographic patterns of human populations or populations of other sexually reproducing species (Gavrilov and Gavrilova 2012).There are different approaches to study infant and child mortality depending on the discipline of the study undertaken
The purpose of the study is to investigate how the specific bio-demographic factors are associated with infant and child mortality in Tanzania and tries to test the following alternative hypothesis (H1): Child mortality rate is independent of all predictors of deaths
The results of odds ratios of multiple predictors were used for the purpose of detection of the specific causes of factors that affect child mortality in Tanzania

Summary

Introduction

Bio-demography is an interdisciplinary approach to demography in which biological considerations (e.g., genetic, epidemiological, and evolutionary determinants) are emphasized: the study of the influence of biological factors on demographic patterns (e.g., relating to fertility, mortality, health, aging, and longevity) of human populations or populations of other sexually reproducing species (Gavrilov and Gavrilova 2012). There are different approaches to study infant and child mortality depending on the discipline of the study undertaken. For example, the study of child mortality is linked with socioeconomic and demographic determinants that influence the survival and health of children. A number of studies have addressed factors that plausibly contributed to child mortality in Tanzania. A brief account of the factors associated with infant and child mortality (Sathiya Susuman 2010; Trussell 1975) pointed out that many countries have endorsed Millennium Development Goal number four (MDG4), with its aim to reduce

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