Abstract
OBJECTIVE: For at least 20 years, birth defects have been the leading cause of infant mortality in the United States. Some studies have reported higher rates for black infants than white infants of mortality due to birth defects, while other studies have reported no black-white differences. The authors analyzed the effect on these rates of a change in the way the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) tabulates "race" for newborns. METHODS: The authors calculated infant mortality rates due to birth defects for 1980-1993 using two standard methods of assigning newborns to "racial" categories: a "race of child" algorithm and the "race of mother" approach currently used by NCHS. RESULTS: From 1980 through 1993, birth defect-specific infant mortality rates (BD-IMRs) were significantly higher for black infants than white infants 12 of the 14 years by "race of mother" and only 5 of 14 years by "race of child." Calculation of BD-IMRs by "race of mother" reduced the rate for white infants and increased the rate for black infants in each of the 14 years. The choice of method for assigning newborns to "racial" categories had a progressively greater effect over time on the black-white gap in BD-IMRs. CONCLUSIONS: Calculations of trends in "race"-specific BD-IMRs by may vary substantially by whether "race of mother" or "race of child" is used. Identifying the method of tabulation is imperative for appropriate comparisons and interpretations.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Bennett T. "Racial" and ethnic classification: two steps forward and one step back? Public Health Rep. 1997 Nov-Dec;112(6):477–480. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Respiratory syncytial virus outbreak activity--United States, 1992. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 1993 Jan 15;42(1):5–7. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kessel S. S., Kleinman J. C., Koontz A. M., Hogue C. J., Berendes H. W. Racial differences in pregnancy outcomes. Clin Perinatol. 1988 Dec;15(4):745–754. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kleinman J. C. Infant mortality among racial/ethnic minority groups, 1983-1984. MMWR CDC Surveill Summ. 1990 Jul;39(3):31–39. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Lynberg M. C., Khoury M. J. Contribution of birth defects to infant mortality among racial/ethnic minority groups, United States, 1983. MMWR CDC Surveill Summ. 1990 Jul;39(3):1–12. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Singh G. K., Yu S. M. Infant mortality in the United States: trends, differentials, and projections, 1950 through 2010. Am J Public Health. 1995 Jul;85(7):957–964. doi: 10.2105/ajph.85.7.957. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]