Infant Mortality Drops 6 Percent in NYC

NEW YORK – Deaths of infants under the age of one in New York City decreased by 6 percent between 2003 and 2004, according to preliminary data released Thursday by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

The infant mortality rate in 2003 was 6.5 per 1,000 live births, compared to 6.1 in 2004.

The IMR was based on 760 infant deaths and 124,099 live births in 2004, a decrease from 807 infant deaths and 124,345 live births in 2003. The city’s IMR was lower than the national average of 6.9 per 1,000 live births in 2003, the health department said, citing preliminary national data.

It said that from 1989 to 2004, New York City’s IMR declined by 54 percent, from 13.3 births to 6.1 births per 1,000 live births.

The health department’s goal is to reduce New York City’s IMR to below 5.0 by 2008.

Very low birth weight infants – those who weigh less than 3 pounds, 5 ounces at birth – accounted for more than half (57 percent) of infant deaths in 2004 but only 1.7 percent of total births. Nearly 90 percent of deaths among infants under 3 pounds, 5 ounces were among those who weighed less than 2 pounds, 3 ounces. The agency said that nearly all VLBW infants are born prematurely and had much higher rates of infant mortality, 205 per 1,000 in 2004, than normal birth weight infants, 1.5 per 1,000.

Infant mortality, the health department said, is influenced by many factors, including the mother’s health and socio-economic status before, during and after pregnancy. The use of alcohol, tobacco or other drugs during pregnancy, and the accessibility and quality of health care services also were factors.

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On the Net: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/public/press05/imr3-05.pdf)