Table 3.
Primary cause of death ascertained from verbal autopsy
|
Azithromycin group |
Placebo group |
Incidence rate ratio (95% CI) | p value | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of children (%) | Incidence (95% CI) | Number of children (%) | Incidence (95% CI) | ||||
| Non-infectious cause | |||||||
| Injury | 17 (1·1%) | 0·22 (0·14–0·36) | 16 (0·9%) | 0·23 (0·14–0·38) | 0·95 (0·48–1·90) | 0·883 | |
| Malnutrition* | 31 (2·0%) | 0·39 (0·26–0·59) | 29 (1·7%) | 0·42 (0·28–0·63) | 0·93 (0·53–1·66) | 0·816 | |
| Underlying | 4 (0·3%) | 0·05 (0·02–0·14) | 6 (0·3%) | 0·09 (0·04–0·19) | 0·60 (0·15–2·09) | 0·423 | |
| Non-underlying | 27 (1·7%) | 0·35 (0·23–0·53) | 23 (1·3%) | 0·33 (0·21–0·52) | 1·05 (0·57–1·95) | 0·881 | |
| Infectious cause | |||||||
| AIDS | 9 (0·6%) | 0·12 (0·06–0·23) | 8 (0·5%) | 0·12 (0·06–0·24) | 0·99 (0·37–2·71) | 0·990 | |
| Measles | 23 (1·5%) | 0·30 (0·19–0·46) | 19 (1·1%) | 0·28 (0·17–0·45) | 1·08 (0·56–2·08) | 0·823 | |
| Meningitis | 63 (4·0%) | 0·82 (0·63–1·09) | 83 (4·8%) | 1·22 (0·96–1·57) | 0·67 (0·46–0·97) | 0·036 | |
| Dysentery | 57 (3·6%) | 0·74 (0·55–0·98) | 77 (4·4%) | 1·14 (0·88–1·47) | 0·65 (0·44–0·94) | 0·025 | |
| Probable | 21 (1·3%) | 0·28 (0·18–0·43) | 38 (2·2%) | 0·56 (0·40–0·79) | 0·49 (0·27–0·86) | 0·014 | |
| Possible | 36 (2·3%) | 0·47 (0·33–0·65) | 39 (2·2%) | 0·57 (0·41–0·78) | 0·82 (0·51–1·30) | 0·399 | |
| Diarrhoea | 234 (14·9%) | 3·01 (2·59–3·49) | 251 (14·5%) | 3·60 (3·11–4·17) | 0·83 (0·68–1·03) | 0·088 | |
| Probable | 104 (6·6%) | 1·37 (1·10–1·70) | 114 (6·6%) | 1·66 (1·34–2·05) | 0·82 (0·61–1·12) | 0·214 | |
| Possible | 130 (8·3%) | 1·65 (1·36–2·01) | 137 (7·9%) | 1·96 (1·61–2·36) | 0·84 (0·65–1·11) | 0·223 | |
| Pertussis | 3 (0·2%) | 0·04 (0·01–0·12) | 3 (0·2%) | 0·04 (0·01–0·14) | 0·89 (0·17–4·83) | 0·891 | |
| Pneumonia | 252 (16·1%) | 3·27 (2·85–3·75) | 275 (15·9%) | 3·96 (3·46–4·53) | 0·83 (0·68–1·00) | 0·051 | |
| Probable | 81 (5·2%) | 1·06 (0·83–1·36) | 97 (5·6%) | 1·40 (1·11–1·77) | 0·76 (0·54–1·06) | 0·107 | |
| Possible | 171 (10·9%) | 2·22 (1·89–2·59) | 178 (10·3%) | 2·57 (2·20–3·01) | 0·86 (0·69–1·07) | 0·186 | |
| Malaria | 437 (27·9%) | 5·60 (4·97–6·32) | 493 (28·4%) | 7·22 (6·43–8·11) | 0·78 (0·66–0·92) | 0·003 | |
| Probable | 57 (3·6%) | 0·74 (0·57–0·96) | 53 (3·1%) | 0·77 (0·59–1·01) | 0·96 (0·66–1·40) | 0·837 | |
| Possible | 380 (24·3%) | 4·89 (4·29–5·57) | 440 (25·4%) | 6·45 (5·69–7·31) | 0·76 (0·63–0·91) | 0·003 | |
| Haemorrhagic fever | 6 (0·4%) | 0·08 (0·03–0·17) | 4 (0·2%) | 0·06 (0·02–0·16) | 1·34 (0·38–5·25) | 0·650 | |
| Other infection | 325 (20·8%) | 4·24 (3·70–4·85) | 354 (20·4%) | 5·06 (4·44–5·78) | 0·84 (0·69–1·01) | 0·063 | |
| Unspecified | 109 (7·0%) | 1·43 (1·17–1·75) | 123 (7·1%) | 1·81 (1·49–2·19) | 0·79 (0·60–1·05) | 0·104 | |
| Total | 1566 (100·0%) | 22·32 (20·86–23·87) | 1735 (100%) | 27·26 (25·50–29·13) | 0·82 (0·75–0·90) | <0·001 | |
Primary cause of death was assessed by use of a hierarchical algorithm. Incidence is reported as deaths per 1000 person-years, estimated from a negative binomial regression of community-level death counts, with total community person-time determined from the census used as the offset.
*
Underlying malnutrition is defined by the occurrence of clinical signs of malnutrition as the first element of the illness, whereas clinical signs of malnutrition occur later in non-underlying malnutrition.