Abstract
To investigate the rate and time trends of neonatal mortality from 1997 to 2014 in Shenyang, which were previously rarely reported upon by developing countries, data on 4719 neonatal deaths (0–28 days) and 970,583 live births from the Shenyang Women and Children Health Care Centre were analyzed. Neonatal mortality rates (per 1000 live births), percent change, and annual percent change (APC) were calculated. During the observation period, neonatal mortality in Shenyang significantly decreased by 7.04%, 8.33%, and 5.35% per year overall, in urban and rural areas, respectively. When grouped by category of neonatal death, the time trends of three categories showed statistically significant decreases: congenital malformations (APC = −9.97%), diseases of the perinatal period (APC = −6.04%), and diseases of the respiratory system (APC = −8.52%). Congenital malformations, diseases of the respiratory system, and diseases of the nervous system and sense organs were the three major contributors to the aforementioned decreasing trend, which accounted for 58.71% in overall areas. Among selective causes of neonatal death, the neonatal mortality rates of pneumonia, congenital heart disease, preterm birth and low birth weight, birth asphyxia, and intracranial hemorrhage of the newborn significantly decreased 7.87%, 7.32%, 2.47%, 11.04%, and 10.68% per year, respectively. In summary, neonatal mortality rates decreased in Shenyang during the 17-year study period. Future studies are warranted to further investigate the factors contributing to the neonatal mortality trends in China.
Highlights
Recent data from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), entitled, A Promise Renewed: 2015 Progress Report demonstrated that since 2000, when governments committed to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the lives of 48 million children under the age of five have been saved [1]
Congenital malformations, diseases of the respiratory system, and diseases of the nervous system and sense organs were the three major contributors to the aforementioned decreasing trend, which accounted for 58.71% in urban and rural areas
Congenital malformations, diseases of the respiratory system, and diseases of the nervous system were the three major contributors to the aforementioned decreasing trend, which accounted for 58.71% in urban and rural areas
Summary
Recent data from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), entitled, A Promise Renewed: 2015 Progress Report demonstrated that since 2000, when governments committed to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the lives of 48 million children under the age of five have been saved [1]. In contrast to more than 12 million children who died in 1990, 6.6 million children died before reaching their fifth birthday in 2012, which was a sharp decrease. These results are still insufficient when compared to one of the most prominent goals for 2015 (MDG-4), which aims to reduce the child mortality rate by two-thirds from the level reported in 1990 [2]. The neonatal mortality rate is an important indicator used for determining the effectiveness of public health issues, including maternal and child health care services as well as for comparing countries with respect to welfare initiatives [3]. Neonatal mortality rates are high in Africa and South-Central and Western Asia; intermediate in Eastern Asia, South America, the Caribbean, and www.impactjournals.com/oncotarget
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