AI Summary & Key Takeaways
AI InsightTherefore, it is necessary to raise the levelof education and awareness regarding childhood mortality, especially in rural areas.
📌 3 Key Takeaways
Özet
Aim: The mortality rate indicator for children is one of the important indicators of population health and socioeconomic development ofcountries. In addition, to reduce the mortality in children, it is essential to determine causes of death. This study aims to determine themortality causes in children aged 1-59 months in Northeastern Iran.Materials and Methods: This population-based cross-sectional study was conducted based on data from the child mortality surveillancesystem, from March 2011 to March 2017. The mortality rate was evaluated according to demographic variables (sex, place of residence andmother’s education). Causes of death were coded according to the International Classification of Diseases. Chi-square and Mann-Whitney Utests were applied to investigate the relationships.Results: The mortality rate in children aged 1-59 months was 8.2 per 1,000 live births (CI 95%: 7.6-8.8) from 2011 to 2017. Totally 53.2% ofmortalities occurred in boys (p=0.07). The frequency of death in the age group of 1-11 months was 1.7 times more than the age group of 12-59months. The highest mortality rates occurred in rural areas and among children with illiterate mothers. During the study period, on average,the mortality rate decreased by 0.7 per 1,000 live births every year. The most common causes of death were unintentional accidents (33.8%)and congenital or chromosomal abnormalities (22.1%).Conclusion: Improving maternal education is among the key strategies for reducing child mortality. Therefore, it is necessary to raise the levelof education and awareness regarding childhood mortality, especially in rural areas.