Table 2.
Effects of albendazole allocation on pre-school child mortality: absolute numbers of deaths per anganwadi child-care centre (AWC) by allocated treatment, albendazole versus control (A vs C), and, from these, mortality rate ratio (A/C) and approximate absolute risk of death from age 1·0 to 6·0 years
|
Number of child deaths recorded per AWC during the whole study, vitamin A versus control (A vs C) and 95% CI for the difference (C–A)* |
Mortality rate ratio (RR=A/C), age 1·0–6·0 years |
Absolute risk of death from age 1·0–6·0 years (%) |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Age 1·0–2·9 years |
Age 3·0–6·0 years |
Age 1·0–6·0 years |
RR | 95% CI | Vitamin A | Control | ||||||||
| A | C | CI for (C–A) | A | C | CI for (C–A) | A | C | CI for (C–A) | ||||||
| Cause of death | ||||||||||||||
| Diarrhoea | 0·54 | 0·56 | −0·04 to 0·09 | 0·29 | 0·33 | −0·02 to 0·09 | 0·83 | 0·89 | −0·05 to 0·16 | 0·94 | 0·83 to 1·06 | 0·70% | 0·75% | |
| Pneumonia | 0·33 | 0·32 | −0·05 to 0·04 | 0·12 | 0·12 | −0·03 to 0·02 | 0·45 | 0·44 | −0·07 to 0·05 | 1·02 | 0·89 to 1·18 | 0·38% | 0·37% | |
| Measles | 0·10 | 0·13 | −0·01 to 0·06 | 0·09 | 0·08 | −0·04 to 0·02 | 0·19 | 0·21 | −0·04 to 0·07 | 0·91 | 0·69 to 1·19 | 0·16% | 0·18% | |
| Other infection/unknown | 0·57 | 0·61 | −0·05 to 0·12 | 0·42 | 0·46 | −0·03 to 0·10 | 0·99 | 1·07 | −0·06 to 0·21 | 0·93 | 0·82 to 1·06 | 0·83% | 0·90% | |
| Malnutrition | 0·19 | 0·18 | −0·05 to 0·03 | 0·05 | 0·06 | −0·01 to 0·02 | 0·24 | 0·24 | −0·06 to 0·05 | 1·02 | 0·82 to 1·27 | 0·21% | 0·20% | |
| Other or external | 0·11 | 0·11 | −0·03 to 0·02 | 0·18 | 0·19 | −0·02 to 0·04 | 0·30 | 0·30 | −0·04 to 0·05 | 0·98 | 0·84 to 1·15 | 0·25% | 0·26% | |
| All causes, by subgroup | ||||||||||||||
| Boys | 0·85 | 0·85 | −0·08 to 0·07 | 0·58 | 0·60 | −0·05 to 0·09 | 1·43 | 1·44 | −0·10 to 0·14 | 0·99 | 0·91 to 1·07 | 2·20% | 2·22% | |
| Girls | 0·99 | 1·06 | −0·02 to 0·16 | 0·59 | 0·64 | −0·00 to 0·11 | 1·58 | 1·70 | −0·00 to 0·24 | 0·93 | 0·86 to 1·00 | 2·92% | 3·15% | |
| May, 1999–April, 2001 (2 years) | 0·84 | 0·87 | −0·05 to 0·11 | 0·55 | 0·58 | −0·02 to 0·10 | 1·39 | 1·46 | −0·05 to 0·18 | 0·96 | 0·88 to 1·03 | 2·92% | 3·06% | |
| May, 2001–April, 2004 (3 years) | 1·00 | 1·04 | −0·06 to 0·14 | 0·62 | 0·65 | −0·05 to 0·12 | 1·62 | 1·69 | −0·10 to 0·25 | 0·96 | 0·86 to 1·06 | 2·26% | 2·37% | |
| Trial albendazole | 1·77 | 1·93 | −0·03 to 0·36 | 1·15 | 1·15 | −0·17 to 0·16 | 2·92 | 3·08 | −0·15 to 0·48 | 0·95 | 0·85 to 1·05† | 2·45% | 2·59% | |
| No trial albendazole | 1·92 | 1·89 | −0·23 to 0·17 | 1·18 | 1·32 | −0·02 to 0·31 | 3·10 | 3·21 | −0·20 to 0·43 | 0·96 | 0·87 to 1·06† | 2·60% | 2·70% | |
| All causes, total‡ | 1·84 | 1·91 | −0·07 to 0·21 | 1·16 | 1·24 | −0·05 to 0·19 | 3·01 | 3·15 | −0·08 to 0·36 | 0·96 | 0·89 to 1·03§ | 2·53% | 2·64% | |
Reduction (C–A) in number of child deaths per AWC and its standard error, s, were calculated by regression of 72 block-specific numbers of child deaths per AWC on vitamin A allocation (0/1), albendazole allocation (also 0/1), and on the block-specific numbers of infant deaths per AWC (to help to correct for any pre-existing variation in prognosis. RR is then A/C with 95% CI (A – x)/(C + x) to (A + x)/(C – x), where x=1·96s/2. Assuming approximately 119 (65 male, 54 female) children per AWC at ages 1·0–6·0 years, approximate absolute 5-year risks were calculated as 5 times (annual deaths per AWC)/(119, 65, or 54, as appropriate). Sensitivity analyses: further inclusion of district (as six indicators) or child population per AWC (which varied little) had no material effect.
Interaction p=0·83.
Mortality at ages 1–6 months had correlation 99·3% with infant and 68·2% with child mortality, so results were unchanged if it was used instead of infant mortality to correct for initial variation in prognosis; without either correction, numbers of child deaths per AWC at ages 1·0–2·9, 3·0–6·0, and 1·0–6·0 years would have been, respectively, 1·87 versus 1·88 (p=0·96), 1·18 versus 1·22 (p=0·50), and 3·05 versus 3·10 (p=0·74); RR 0·98 (0·89–1·08); absolute risks 2·56% versus 2·61%.
2-sided p=0·22.