Linked Birth/Infant Death File, 1998

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Scientific Data Documentation
Linked Birth/Infant Death File, 1998

DSN: CC36.NATAL98.DENOM
     CC36.NATAL98.DENOM.PS
     CC36.NATTAL98.LINK
     CC36.NATAL98.LINK.PS
     CC36.NATAL98.UNLINK
     CC36.NATAL98.UNLINK.PS

Contents

Introduction, Methodology, and Classification of Data.
Machine used, file and data characteristics.
List of data elements and locations.
Record layout and definition of items and codes.
County geographic codes available on the public-use file.
City geographic codes available on the public-use file.
Titles and codes for the 61 cause-of-death list.
Documentation tables 1-6.
Technical Appendix for the 1998 Natality file.
1998 Addendum to the 1995 Mortality Technical Appendix.
Technical Appendix for the 1995 Mortality file.

Symbols Used In Tables

Symbol       Explanation
---            Data not available
   ...            Category not applicable
   -              Quantity zero
0.0            Quantity more than 0 but less than 0.05
   *              Figure does not meet standards of reliability or precision

Acknowledgments

This tape documentation was prepared in the Division of Vital Statistics. Linda Biggar, Systems, Programming and Statistical Resources Branch and Marian MacDorman and TJ Mathews of the Reproductive Statistics Branch, wrote the tape documentation. Sherry Murphy, Mortality Statistics Branch, coordinated preparation of the 1995 Mortality Technical Appendix and 1998 Addendum. Sally Curtin of the Reproductive Statistics Branch coordinated preparation of the 1998 Natality Technical Appendix. The Registration Methods Branch and the Technical Services Branch provided consultation to State vital statistics offices regarding collection of birth and death certificate data.

Introduction

The linked birth/infant death data set (linked file) is now being released in two different formats - period data and birth cohort data. This documentation is for the 1998 period linked file. Beginning with 1995 data, the period linked files have formed the basis for all official NCHS linked file statistics (except for special cohort studies). Differences between period and birth cohort data are outlined below.

Period data - The numerator for the 1998 period linked file consists of all infant deaths occurring in 1998 linked to their corresponding birth certificates, whether the birth occurred in 1998 or 1997. The denominator file for this data set is the 1998 natality file, that is, all births occurring in 1998.

Birth cohort data - The numerator for the 1998 birth cohort linked file consists of deaths to infants born in 1998 whether the death occurred in 1998 or 1999. The denominator file is the 1998 natality file, that is, all births occurring in 1998. This file will be available about one year after the release of the period linked file.

The release of linked file data in two different formats allows NCHS to meet customer demands for more timely linked file data while still meeting the needs of data users who prefer the birth cohort format. While the birth cohort format has methodological advantages, it creates substantial delays in data availability, since it is necessary to wait until the close of the following data year to include all infant deaths to the birth cohort.

The 1998 period linked birth/infant death data set includes several data files. The first file includes all US infant deaths which occurred in the 1998 data year linked to their corresponding birth certificates, whether the birth occurred in 1998 or in 1997 - referred to as the numerator file. The second file contains information from the death certificate for all US infant death records which could not be linked to their corresponding birth certificates - referred to as the unlinked death file. The third file is the 1998 NCHS natality file for the US in compressed format, which is used to provide denominators for rate computations. These same three data files are also available for Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam.

Changes Beginning with the 1995 Data Year

In part to correct for known biases in the data, changes were made to the linked file beginning with the 1995 data year, and these changes are also effective for 1998 data. A weight has been added to the linked numerator file to correct in part for biases in percent of records linked by major characteristics (see section on Percent of records linked below). The number of infant deaths in the linked file are weighted to equal the sum of the linked plus unlinked infant deaths by age at death and state. The formula for computing the weights is as follows:

number of linked infant deaths + number of unlinked infant deaths
number of linked infant deaths.

A separate weight is computed for each State of residence of birth and each age at death category (<1 day, 1-27 days, 28 days-1year). Thus, weights are 1.0 for states which link all of their infant deaths. The denominator file is not weighted. Weights have not been computed for the Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, and Guam file.

An imputation for not-stated birthweight has been added to the data set, to reduce potential bias in the computation of birthweight-specific infant mortality rates. Basically, if birthweight is not-stated and the period of gestation is known, birthweight is assigned the value from the previous record with the same period of gestation, race, sex, and plurality. Imputed values are flagged. The addition of this imputation has reduced the percent of not-stated responses for birthweight from 3.63% to 1.29% in the numerator file, and from 0.12% to 0.05% in the denominator file, thus reducing (but not eliminating) the potential for underestimation when computing birthweight-specific infant mortality rates. The change from a birth cohort to a period format was discussed in detail on page one.

Comparisons of infant mortality data from the linked file with infant mortality data from the vital statistics mortality file

Although the time periods are the same, numbers of infant deaths and infant mortality rates by characteristics are not identical between the 1998 period linked file and the 1998 vital statistics mortality file.1 The differences can be traced to three different causes: 1) geographic differences; 2) additional quality control; and 3) weighting.

Geographic differences - To be included in the linked file for the 50 States and D.C., the birth and death must both occur inside the 50 States and D.C. In contrast, for the vital statistics mortality file, deaths which occur in the 50 States and D.C. to infants born inside and outside of the 50 States and D.C. are included. Similarly, to be included in the linked data file for Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam, the birth and death must both occur in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands or Guam. In contrast, for the vital statistics mortality file, deaths which occurred in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam to infants born inside and outside of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam are included.

¹ see: Murphy SL. Deaths: Final Data for 1998. National vital statistics report; vol. 48 no. 11. Hyattsville, Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics. 2000.

Additional quality control - The second reason for differences between the two files is that the linkage process subjects infant death records to an additional round of quality control review. Every year, a few records are voided from the file at this stage because they are found to be fetal deaths, deaths at ages greater than 1 year, or duplicate death certificates.

Weighting - The third reason to the weighting procedures added to the 1995 and subsequent linked files. Beginning with 1995 data, linked file records are now weighted to compensate for the 2-3 percent of infant death records which could not be linked to their corresponding birth certificates. Although every effort has been made to design weights which will accurately reflect the distribution of deaths by characteristics, weighting may contribute to small differences in numbers and rates by specific variables between the linked file and the vital statistics mortality files.

In most cases, differences between numbers of infant deaths and infant mortality rates between the linked file and those computed from the vital statistics mortality file are negligible.

Methodology

The methodology used to create the national file of linked birth and infant death records takes advantage of two existing data sources:

State linked files for the identification of linked birth and infant death certificates; and
NCHS natality and mortality computerized statistical files, the source of computer records for the two linked certificates.

Virtually all States routinely link infant death certificates to their corresponding birth certificates for legal and statistical purposes. When the birth and death of an infant occur in different States, copies of the records are exchanged by the State of death and State of birth in order to effect a link. In addition, if a third State is identified as the State of residence at the time of birth or death, that State is also sent a copy of the appropriate certificate by the State where the birth or death occurred.

The NCHS natality and mortality files, produced annually, include statistical data from birth and death certificates that are provided to NCHS by States under the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program (VSCP). The data have been coded according to uniform coding specifications, have passed rigid quality control standards, have been edited and reviewed, and are the basis for official U.S. birth and death statistics.

To initiate processing, NCHS obtained matching birth certificate numbers from States for all infant deaths that occurred in their jurisdiction. We used this information to extract final, edited mortality and natality data from the NCHS natality and mortality statistical files. Individual birth and death records were selected from their respective files and linked into a single statistical record, thereby establishing a national linked record file.

After the initial linkage, NCHS returned to the States where the death occurred computer lists of unlinked infant death certificates for follow up linking. If the birth occurred in a State different from the State of death, the State of birth identified on the death certificate was contacted to obtain the linking birth certificate. State additions and corrections were incorporated, and a final, national linked file was produced. Characteristics of the natality and mortality data from which the linked file is constructed are described in detail in the Technical Appendices and Addenda included in this document.

Characteristics of Unlinked File

For the 1998 linked file 467, or 1.6% of all infant death records could not be linked to their corresponding birth certificates. Unlinked records are included in a separate data file in this data set. The unlinked record file uses the same record layout as the numerator file of linked birth and infant death records. However, except as noted below, tape locations 1-210, reserved for information from the matching birth certificate, are blank since no matching birth certificate could be found for these records. The sex field (tape location 79) contains the sex of infant as reported on the death certificate, rather than the sex of infant from the birth certificate, which is not available. The race field (tape location 36-37) contains the race of the decedent as reported on the death certificate rather than the race of mother as reported on the birth certificate as is the case with the linked record file. The race of mother on the birth certificate is generally considered to be more accurate than the race information from the death certificate (see section on Comparison of race data from birth and death certificates in the Mortality Technical Appendix included in this documentation). Also, date of birth as reported on the death certificate is used to generate age at death. This information is used in place of date of birth from the birth certificate, which is not available.

Documentation table 6 shows counts of unlinked records by race and age at death for each State of residence. The user is cautioned in using table 6 that the race and residence items are based on information reported on the death certificate; whereas, tables 1-5 present data from the linked file in which the race and residence items are based on information reported on the birth certificate. (see section on Comparison of race data from birth and death certificates in the Mortality Technical Appendix included in this documentation).

Percent of Records Linked

The 1998 linked file includes 27,883 linked infant death records and 467 unlinked infant death records. The linked file is weighted to the sum of linked plus unlinked records, thus the total number of weighted infant deaths by place of occurrence is 28,350. While the overall percent linked for infant deaths in the 1998 file is 98.4%, there are differences in percent linked by certain variables. These differences have important implications for how the data is analyzed.

Table 1 shows the percent of infant deaths linked by State of occurrence of death. While most States link a high percentage of infant deaths, linkage rates for some States are well below the national average. Note in particular the percent linked for California (95.9%), Maine (96.3%), New Mexico (96.1%), Ohio (94.6%) and Oklahoma (93.5%). When a high percentage of deaths remain unlinked, unweighted infant mortality rates computed for these States are underestimated. It is for this reason that weights were added to the file to correct for biases in the data due to poor data linkage for particular states.

The percent of infant deaths linked by race and age at death is shown in Table 2. In general, a slightly higher percentage of postneonatal (99.1%) than neonatal (98.2%) deaths were linked. The percent of records linked was 98.3% for infants of white and 98.5% for infants of black mothers. Variations in percent linked by underlying cause of death have also been noted (data not shown). While the weighting protocol has been designed to correct for possible bias due to variations in match rates by characteristics, no statistical method can correct perfectly for data limitations. Therefore, variations in the percent of records linked should be taken into consideration when comparing infant mortality rates by detailed characteristics.

Geographic classification

Geographic codes in this data set are based on the results of the 1990 census. Because of confidentiality concerns, only those counties and cities with a population size of 250,000 or more are separately identified in this data set. Users should refer to the geographic code outline in this document for the list of available areas and codes.

For events to be included in the linked file, both the birth and death must occur inside the 50 States and D.C. in the case of the 50 States and D.C. file; or in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands or Guam in the case of the Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands and Guam file. In tabulations of linked data and denominator data events occurring in each of the respective areas to nonresidents are included in tabulations that are by place of occurrence, and excluded from tabulations by place of residence. These exclusions are based on the usual place of residence of the mother. This item is contained in both the denominator file and the birth section of the numerator (linked) file. Nonresidents are identified by a code 4 in location 11 of these files.

Table 1. Percent of infant deaths linked by state of occurrence of death: United States, 1998 linked file

United States	98.4%	Nebraska	100.0%
Alabama	100.0%	Nevada	97.4%
Alaska	98.1%	New Hampshire	100.0%
Arizona	97.5%	New Jersey	98.3%
Arkansas	97.7%	New Mexico	96.1%
California	95.9%	New York State	98.2%
Colorado	100.0%	New York City	99.2%
Connecticut	100.0%	North Carolina	99.7%
Delaware	100.0%	North Dakota	100.0%
District of Columbia	98.3%	Ohio	94.6%
Florida	99.7%	Oklahoma	93.5%
Georgia	100.0%	Oregon	100.0%
Hawaii	100.0%	Pennsylvania	98.0%
Idaho	100.0%	Rhode Island	100.0%
Illinois	99.0%	South Carolina	100.0%
Indiana	98.7%	South Dakota	100.0%
Iowa	100.0%	Tennessee	100.0%
Kansas	100.0%	Texas	98.0%
Kentucky	99.4%	Utah	98.2%
Louisiana	98.7%	Vermont	100.0%
Maine	96.3%	Virginia	99.4%
Maryland	99.2%	Washington	99.3%
Massachusetts	97.2%	West Virginia	99.4%
Michigan	98.6%	Wisconsin	100.0%
Minnesota	100.0%	Wyoming	100.0%
Mississippi	100.0%	Puerto Rico	99.6%
Missouri	97.5%	Virgin Islands	100.0%
Montana	98.6%	Guam	97.1%

Table 2. Percent of infant deaths linked by race and age at death: United States, 1998 linked file
(Infant deaths are under 1 year; neonatal, under 28 days, and postneonatal, 28 days-under 1 year)

All races White Black

Infant 98.4% 98.3% 98.5%

Neonatal 98.2% 98.1% 98.3%

Postneonatal 99.1% 99.1% 99.0%

Demographic and Medical Classification

The documents listed below describe in detail the procedures employed for demographic classification on both the birth and death records and medical classification on death records. While not absolutely essential to the proper interpretation of the data for a number of general applications, these documents should nevertheless be studied carefully prior to any detailed analysis of demographic or medical (especially multiple cause) data variables. In particular, there are a number of exceptions to the ICD rules in multiple cause-of-death coding which, if not treated properly, may result in faulty analysis of the data.

Manual of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Injuries, and the Cause-of-Death, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) Volumes 1 and 2.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Preparation Part 2a, Vital Statistics Instructions for Classifying the Underlying Cause-of-Death. Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Preparation, Part 2b, Vital Statistics Instructions for Classifying Multiple Cause-of-Death. Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Preparation, Part 2c, Vital Statistics ICD-9 ACME Decision Tables for Classifying Underlying Causes-of-Death. Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Preparation, Part 2d, Vital Statistics NCHS Procedures for Mortality Medical Data System File Preparation and Maintenance, Effective 1985.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Tabulation, Part 2f, Vital Statistics ICD-9 TRANSAX Disease Reference Tables for Classifying Multiple Causes-of-Death, 1982-85.
NCHS Instruction Manual Part 2g, Vital Statistics, Data Entry Instructions for the Mortality Medical Indexing, Classification, and Retrieval system (MICAR). Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual Part 2h, Vital Statistics, Dictionary of Valid Terms for the Mortality Medical Indexing, Classification, and Retrieval System (MICAR). Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Preparation, Part 3a, Vital Statistics Classification and Coding Instructions for Live Birth Records. Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual Data Preparation, Part 4, Vital Statistics Demographic Classification and Coding Instructions for Death Records. Published annually.
NCHS Instruction Manual, Part 11, Vital Statistics Computer Edits for Mortality Data, Effective 1990.
NCHS Instruction Manual, Part 12, Vital Statistics Computer Edits for Natality Data, Effective 1993.

Copies of NCHS Instruction Manuals may be requested from the Chief, Data Preparation Branch, Division of Data Processing, National Center for Health Statistics, P.O. Box 12214, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709.

In addition, the user should refer to the Technical Appendices of the Vital Statistics of the United States for information on the source of data, coding procedures, quality of the data, etc. The Technical Appendices for natality and mortality are part of this documentation package.

Cause-of-Death Data

Mortality data are traditionally analyzed and published in terms of underlying cause-of-death. The underlying cause-of-death data are coded and classified as described in the Mortality Technical Appendices. NCHS has augmented underlying cause-of-death data with data on multiple causes reported on the death certificate. The linked file includes both underlying and multiple cause-of-death data.

The multiple cause of death codes were developed with two objectives in mind. First, to facilitate etiological studies of the relationships among conditions, it was necessary to reflect
accurately in coded form each condition and its location on the death certificate in the exact manner given by the certifier. Secondly, coding needed to be carried out in a manner by which the underlying cause of death could be assigned through computer applications. The approach was to suspend the linkage provisions of the ICD for the purpose of condition coding and code each entity with minimum regard to other conditions present on the certification. This general approach is hereafter called entity coding.

Unfortunately, the set of multiple cause codes produced by entity coding is not conducive to a third objective -- the generation of person-based multiple cause statistics. Person-based analysis requires that each condition be coded within the context of every other condition on the same certificate and modified or linked to such conditions as provided by ICD-9. By definition, the entity data cannot meet this requirement since the linkage provisions distort the character and placement of the information originally recorded by the certifying physician.

Since the two objectives are incompatible, NCHS has chosen to create from the original set of entity codes a new code set called record axis multiple cause data. Essentially, the axis of classification has been converted from an entity basis to a record (or person) basis. The record axis codes are assigned in terms of the set of codes that best describe the overall medical certification portion of the death certificate.

This translation is accomplished by a computer system called TRANSAX (translation of axis) through selective use of traditional linkage and modification rules for mortality coding. Underlying cause linkages which simply prefer one code over another for purposes of underlying cause selection are not included. Each entity code on the record is examined and modified or deleted as necessary to create a set of codes which are free of contradictions and are the most precise within the constraints of ICD-9 and medical information on the record. Repetitive codes are deleted. The process may (1) combine two entity axis categories together to a new category thereby eliminating a contradiction or standardizing the data; or (2) eliminate one category in favor of another to promote specificity of the data or resolve contradictions. The following examples from ICD-9 illustrate the effect of this translation:

Case 1:       When reported on the same record as separate entities, cirrhosis of liver and
                   alcoholism are coded to 5715 (cirrhosis of liver without mention of alcohol) and
                   303 (alcohol dependence syndrome). Tabulation of records with 5715 would on
                   the surface falsely imply that such records had no mention of alcohol.   A
                   referable codification would be 5712 (alcoholic cirrhosis of liver) in lieu of both
                   5715 and 303.

Case 2:        If "gastric ulcer" and "bleeding gastric ulcer" are reported on a record they are
                   coded to 5319 (gastric ulcer, unspecified as acute or chronic, without mention of
                   hemorrhage or perforation) and 5314 (gastric ulcer, chronic or unspecified, with
                   hemorrhage). A more concise codification would be to code 5314 only since the
                   5314 shows both the gastric ulcer and the bleeding.

Entity Axis Codes

The original conditions coded for selection of the underlying cause of death are reformatted and edited prior to creating the public-use tape. The following paragraphs describe the format and application of entity axis data.

Format - Each entity-axis code is displayed as an overall seven byte code with subcomponents as follows:

Line indicator:       The first byte represents the line of the certificate on which the
                            code appears. Six lines (1-6) are allowable with the fourth and fifth
                            denoting one or two written in "due to"s beyond the three lines
                            provided in Part I of the U.S. standard death certificate. Line "6"
                            represents Part II of the certificate.
Position indicator: The next byte indicates the position of the code on the line, i.e., it
is the first (1), second (2), third (3),... eighth (8) code on the line.
Cause category: The next four bytes represent the ICD-9 cause code.
Nature of injury flag: ICD-9 uses the same series of numbers (800-999) to indicate
                                 nature of injury (N codes) and external cause codes (E codes).
                                 This flag distinguishes between the two with a one (1)
                                 representing nature of injury codes and a zero (0) representing
                                 all other cause codes.

A maximum of 20 of these seven byte codes are captured on a record for multiple-cause purposes. This may consist of a maximum of 8 codes on any given line with up to 20 codes distributed across three or more lines depending on where the subject conditions are located on the certificate. Codes may be omitted from one or more lines, e.g., line 1 with one or more codes, line 2 with no codes, line 3 with one or more codes.

In writing out these codes, they are ordered as follows: line 1 first code, line 1 second code, etc. ----- line 2 first code, line 2 second code, etc. ----- line 3 ----- line 4 ----- line 5 ----- line 6. Any space remaining in the field is left blank. The specifics of locations are contained in the record layout given later in this document.

Edit - The original conditions are edited to remove invalid codes, reverify the coding of certain rare causes of death, and assure age/cause and sex/cause compatibility. Detailed information relating to the edit criteria and the sets of cause codes which are valid to underlying cause coding and multiple cause coding are provided in Part 11 of the NCHS Vital Statistics Instruction Manual Series.

Entity axis applications - The entity axis multiple cause data is appropriate to analyses which require that each condition be coded as a stand alone entity without linkage to other conditions and/or require information on the placement of such conditions in the certificate. Within this framework, the entity data are appropriate to the examination of etiological relationships among conditions, accuracy of certification reporting, and the validity of traditional assumptions in underlying cause selection.

Additionally, the entity data provide in certain categories a more detailed code assignment which is linked out in the creation of record axis data. Where such detail is needed for a study, the user should selectively employ entity data. Finally, the researcher may not wish to be bound by the assumptions used in the axis translation process preferring rather to investigate hypotheses of his own predilection.

By definition, the main limitation of entity axis data is that an entity code does not necessarily reflect the best code for a condition when considered within the context of the medical certification as a whole. As a result certain entity codes can be misleading or even contradict other codes in the record. For example, category 5750 is titled "Acute cholecystitis without mention of calculus". Within the framework of entity codes this is interpreted to mean that the codable entity itself contained no mention of calculus rather than that calculus was not mentioned anywhere on the record. Tabulation of records with a "5750" as a count of persons having acute cholecystitis without mention of calculus would therefore be erroneous. This illustrates the fact that under entity coding the ICD-9 titles cannot be taken literally. The user must study the rules for entity coding as they relate to his/her research prior to utilization of entity data. The user is further cautioned that the inclusion notes in ICD-9 which relate to modifying and combining categories are seldom applicable to entity coding (except where provided in Part 2b of the Vital Statistics Instruction Manual Series).

In tabulating the entity axis data, one may count codes with the resultant tabulation of an individual code representing the number of times the disease(s) represented by the code appears in the file. In this kind of tabulation of morbid condition prevalence, the counts among categories may be added together to produce counts for groups of codes. Alternatively, subject to the limitations given above, one may count persons having mention of the disease represented by a code or codes. In this instance it is not correct to add counts for individual codes to create person counts for groups of codes. Since more than one code in the researcher's interest may appear together on the certificate, totaling must account for higher order interactions among codes. Up to 20 codes may be assigned on a record; therefore, a 20-way interaction is theoretically possible. All totaling must be based on mention of one or more of the categories under investigation.

Record Axis Codes

The following paragraphs describe the format and application of record-axis data. Part 2f of the Vital Statistics Instruction Manual Series describes the TRANSAX process for creating record axis data from entity axis data.

Format - Each record (or person) axis code is displayed in five bytes. Location information is not relevant. The Code consists of the following components:

Cause category: The first four bytes represent the ICD-9 cause code.
Nature of injury flag: The last byte contains a 0 or 1 with the 1 indicating that the
cause is a nature of injury category.

Again, a maximum of 20 codes are captured on a record for multiple cause purposes. The codes are written in a 100-byte field in ascending code number (5 bytes) order with any unused bytes left blank.

Edit - The record axis codes are edited for rare causes and age/cause and sex/cause compatibility. Likewise, individual code validity is checked. The valid code set for record axis coding is the same as that for entity coding.

Record axis applications - The record axis multiple cause data set is the basis for NCHS core multiple cause tabulations. Location of codes is not relevant to this data set and conditions have been linked into the most meaningful categories for the certification. The most immediate consequence for the user is that the codes on the record already represent mention of a disease assignable to that particular ICD-9 category. This is in contrast to the entity code which is assigned each time such a disease is reported on two different lines of the certification. Secondly, the linkage implies that within the constraints of ICD-9 the most meaningful code has been assigned. The translation process creates for the user a data set which is edited for contradictions, duplicate codes, and imprecisions. In contrast to entity axis data, record axis data are classified in a manner comparable to underlying cause of death classification thereby facilitating joint analysis of these variables. Likewise, they are comparable to general morbidity coding where the linkage provisions of ICD-9 are usually utilized. A potential disadvantage of record axis data is that some detail is sacrificed in a number of the linkages.

The user can take the record axis codes as literally representing the information conveyed in ICD-9 category titles. While knowledge of the rules for combining and linking and coding conditions is useful, it is not a prerequisite to meaningful analysis of the data as long as one is willing to accept the assumptions of the axis translation process. The user is cautioned, however, that due to special rules in mortality coding, not all linkage notes in ICD-9 are utilized. (See Part 2f of the Vital Statistics Instruction Manual Series.)

The user should proceed with caution in using record axis data to count conditions as opposed to people with conditions since linkages have been invoked and duplicate codes have been eliminated. As with entity data, person based tabulations which combine individual cause categories must take into account the possible interaction of up to 20 codes on a single certificate.

In using the NCHS multiple cause data, the user is urged to review the information in this document and its references. The instructional material does change from year to year and revision to revision. The user is cautioned that coding of specific ICD-9 categories should be checked in the appropriate instruction manual. What may appear on the surface to be the correct code by ICD-9 may in fact not be correct as given in the instruction manuals.

If on the surface it is not obvious whether entity axis or record axis data should be employed in a given application, detailed examination of Part 2f of the Vital Statistics Instruction Manual Series and its attachments will probably provide the necessary information to make a decision. It allows the user to determine the extent of the trade-offs between the two sets of data in terms of specific categories and the assumptions of axis translation. In certain situations, a combination of entity and record axis data may be the more appropriate alternative.

Data File Characteristics:

The data were processed using the SAS language on an IBM 9672.
The data are recorded in IBM/EBCDIC 8-bit code for each character.
Codes may be numeric, alphabets, or blank.
The record type is blocked, fixed format.
The last block for the data year may be a short block.

I. Denominator File:

United States Data Set
A. File Organization:      One file, multiple tapes
B. Record count:           3,945,192
C. Record length:          210
D. Blocksize:                 32130
E. Data counts:              a. By occurrence: 3,945,192
                                     b. By residence: 3,941,553
                                     c. To foreign residents: 3,639

Possessions Data Set
A. File Organization:       One file, one tape
B. Record count:            66,761
C. Record length:           210
D. Blocksize:                  32130

Puerto Rico
Data counts:                   a. By occurrence:   60,518
                                      b. By occurrence and residence: 60,412
                                      c. To foreign residents: 106

Virgin Islands
Data counts:                   a. By occurrence: 1,915
                                      b. By occurrence and residence: 1,800
                                      c. To foreign residents: 115

Guam
Data counts:                   a. By occurrence: 4,328
                                      b. By occurrence and residence:   4,318
                                      c. To foreign residents: 10

II. Numerator File:

United States Data Set
A. File Organization:         One of multiple files on a tape
B. Record count:              27,883
C. Record length:             535
D. Blocksize:                    32635
E. Data counts:                 a. By occurrence: 27,883
                                        b. By residence: 27,859
                                        c. To foreign residents: 24

Possessions Data Set
A. File Organization:         One of multiple files on a tape
B. Record count:               682
C. Record length:              535
D. Blocksize:                    32635

Puerto Rico
Data counts:                       a. By occurrence: 631
                                          b. By occurrence and residence: 629
                                          c. To foreign residents: 2

Virgin Islands
Data counts:                       a. By occurrence: 17
                                          b. By occurrence and residence: 17
                                          c. To foreign residents: 0

Guam
Data counts:                       a. By occurrence: 34
                                          b. By occurrence and residence: 34
                                          c. To foreign residents: 0

III. Unlinked File:

United States Data Set
A. File Organization:         One file of multiple files on a tape
B. Record count:               467
C. Record length:              535
D. Blocksize:                     32635
E. Data counts:                  a. By occurrence: 467
                                         b. By residence: 467
                                         c. To foreign residents: 0

Possessions Data Set
A. File Organization:          One file of multiple files on a tape
B. Record count:                7
C. Record length:               535
D. Blocksize:                      32635

Puerto Rico
Data counts:                     a. By occurrence:   5
                                        b. By occurrence and residence:   4
                                        c. To foreign residents:   1

Virgin Islands
Data counts:                     a. By occurrence:   2
                                        b. By occurrence and residence:   2
                                        c. To foreign residents:   0

Guam
Data counts:                     a. By occurrence:   0
                                        b. By occurrence and residence:   0
                                        c. To foreign residents:   0

1998 Denominator Record and Natality Section of Numerator (Linked) Record

Locations 7-210 of the linked file contain data from the Birth Certificate.
Locations 211-535 of linked file contain data from the Death Certificate.

Residence items in the Denominator Record and in the natality section of the Numerator (linked) Record refer to the usual place of residence of the Mother; whereas in the mortality section of the Numerator (Linked) Record, these items refer to the residence of the Decedent.

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

1-6 6 R0
Reserved Positions

7-10 4 BIRYR
Year of Birth

1997 ... Born in 1997
(This code valid for numerator
(linked) file file only).

1998 ... Born in 1998

11 1 RESSTATB
Resident Status - Birth

United States Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: State and county of occurrence
and residence are the same.
2 ... INTRASTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence
and residence are the same, but county is
different.
3 ... INTERSTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence
and residence are different, but both are
in the 50 States and D.C.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: State of occurrence is one of
the 50 States or the District of Columbia, but
place of residence of mother is outside of the
50 States and D.C.

Puerto Rico Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: State and county of occurrence
and residence are the same.
2 ... INTRASTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence
and residence are the same, but county is different.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: Occurred in Puerto Rico to a
resident of any other place.

Virgin Islands Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: State and county of occurrence and
residence are the same.
2 ... INTRASTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence
and residence are the same, but county is different.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: Occurred in the Virgin Islands
to a resident of any other place.

Guam Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: Occurred in Guam to a resident of Guam or
to a resident of the U.S.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: Occurred in Guam to a resident
of any place other than Guam or the U.S.

12-13 2 BRSTATE
Expanded State of Residence - NCHS Codes - Birth

This item is designed to separately identify New York City
records from other New York State records.

United States Occurrence
01 ... Alabama
02 ... Alaska
03 ... Arizona
04 ... Arkansas
05 ... California
06 ... Colorado
07 ... Connecticut
08 ... Delaware
09 ... District of Columbia
10 ... Florida
11 ... Georgia
12 ... Hawaii
13 ... Idaho
14 ... Illinois
15 ... Indiana
16 ... Iowa
17 ... Kansas
18 ... Kentucky
19 ... Louisiana
20 ... Maine
21 ... Maryland
22 ... Massachusetts
23 ... Michigan
24 ... Minnesota
25 ... Mississippi
26 ... Missouri
27 ... Montana
28 ... Nebraska
29 ... Nevada
30 ... New Hampshire
31 ... New Jersey
32 ... New Mexico
33 ... New York
34 ... New York city
35 ... North Carolina
36 ... North Dakota
37 ... Ohio
38 ... Oklahoma
39 ... Oregon
40 ... Pennsylvania
41 ... Rhode Island
42 ... South Carolina
43 ... South Dakota
44 ... Tennessee
45 ... Texas
46 ... Utah

12-13 2 BRSTATE
Expanded State of Residence - NCHS Codes - Birth (Cond't)

This item is designed to separately identify New York City records from
other New York State records.

United States Occurrence
47 ... Vermont
48 ... Virginia
49 ... Washington
50 ... West Virginia
51 ... Wisconsin
52 ... Wyoming
53-58,60 ... Foreign Residents
53 ... Puerto Rico
54 ... Virgin Islands
55 ... Guam
56 ... Canada
57 ... Cuba
58 ... Mexico
60 ... Remainder of the World

Puerto Rico Occurrence
53 ... Puerto Rico
01-52,54-58,60 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for
specific code structure.

Virgin Islands Occurrence
54 ... Virgin Islands
01-53,55-58,60 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for
specific code structure.

Guam Occurrence
55 ... Guam
01-52 ... U.S. resident is also considered a resident
of Guam.
53,54,58,60 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for
specific code structure.

FIPSOCCB
Federal Information Processing Standards
(FIPS) Geographic Codes (Occurrence) - Birth

Refer to the Geographic Code Outline further back in this
document for a detailed list of areas and codes. For an
explanation of FIPS codes, reference should be made to
various National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) publications.

14-15 2 STOCCFIPB
State of Occurrence (FIPS) - Birth

United States
01 ... Alabama
02 ... Alaska
04 ... Arizona
05 ... Arkansas
06 ... California
08 ... Colorado
09 ... Connecticut
10 ... Delaware
11 ... District of Columbia
12 ... Florida
13 ... Georgia
15 ... Hawaii
16 ... Idaho
17 ... Illinois
18 ... Indiana
19 ... Iowa
20 ... Kansas
21 ... Kentucky
22 ... Louisiana
23 ... Maine
24 ... Maryland
25 ... Massachusetts
26 ... Michigan
27 ... Minnesota
28 ... Mississippi
29 ... Missouri
30 ... Montana
31 ... Nebraska
32 ... Nevada
33 ... New Hampshire
34 ... New Jersey
35 ... New Mexico
36 ... New York
37 ... North Carolina
38 ... North Dakota
39 ... Ohio
40 ... Oklahoma
41 ... Oregon
42 ... Pennsylvania
44 ... Rhode Island
45 ... South Carolina
46 ... South Dakota
47 ... Tennessee
48 ... Texas

14-15 2 STOCCFIPB
State of Occurrence (FIPS) - Birth (Cond't)

United States
49 ... Utah
50 ... Vermont
51 ... Virginia
53 ... Washington
54 ... West Virginia
55 ... Wisconsin
56 ... Wyoming

Puerto Rico
72 ... Puerto Rico

Virgin Islands
78 ... Virgin Islands

Guam
66 ... Guam

16-18 3 CNTOCFIPB
County of Occurrence (FIPS) - Birth

001-nnn ... Counties and county equivalents (independent and
coextensive cities) are numbered alphabetically
within each State. (Note: To uniquely identify a
county, both the State and county codes must be
used.)

999 ... County with less than 250,000 population

19-23 5 FIPSRESB
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) Geographic
Codes (Residence) - Birth

19-20 2 STRESFIPB
State of Residence (FIPS) - Birth

United States Occurrence
00 ... Foreign residents
01 ... Alabama
02 ... Alaska
04 ... Arizona
05 ... Arkansas
06 ... California
08 ... Colorado
09 ... Connecticut
10 ... Delaware
11 ... District of Columbia
12 ... Florida
13 ... Georgia
15 ... Hawaii
16 ... Idaho
17 ... Illinois
18 ... Indiana
19 ... Iowa
20 ... Kansas
21 ... Kentucky
22 ... Louisiana
23 ... Maine
24 ... Maryland
25 ... Massachusetts
26 ... Michigan
27 ... Minnesota
28 ... Mississippi
29 ... Missouri
30 ... Montana
31 ... Nebraska
32 ... Nevada
33 ... New Hampshire
34 ... New Jersey
35 ... New Mexico
36 ... New York
37 ... North Carolina
38 ... North Dakota
39 ... Ohio
40 ... Oklahoma
41 ... Oregon
42 ... Pennsylvania
44 ... Rhode Island
45 ... South Carolina
46 ... South Dakota
47 ... Tennessee

19-20 2 STRESFIPB
State of Residence (FIPS) - Birth Cond't)

United States Occurrence
48 ... Texas
49 ... Utah
50 ... Vermont
51 ... Virginia
53 ... Washington
54 ... West Virginia
55 ... Wisconsin
56 ... Wyoming

Puerto Rico Occurrence
00-56,66,78 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for specific
code structure
72 ... Puerto Rico

Virgin Islands Occurrence
00-56,66,72 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for specific
code structure
78 ... Virgin Islands

Guam Occurrence
00,72,78 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for
specific code structure
01-56 ... U.S. Resident is also considered a resident
of Guam. Refer to U.S. for specific code
structure.
66 ... Guam

21-23 3 CNTYRFPB
County of Residence (FIPS) - Birth

000 ... Foreign residents
001-nnn ... Counties and county equivalents (independent and
coextensive cities) are numbered alphabetically
within each State (Note: To uniquely identify a
county, both the State and county codes must be
used.)

999 ... County with less than 250,000 population

24-28 5 PLRES
Place (City) of Residence (FIPS)

A complete list of cities is shown in the Geographic Code
Outline further back in this document.

00000 ... Foreign residents
00001-nnnnn ... Code range
99999 ... Balance of county; or city less than
250,000 population

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

29 1 MAGEFLG
Age of Mother Flag

This position is flagged whenever age is imputed or the mother's
reported age is used. The reported age is used, if valid, when
computed age derived from the date of birth is not available or
when it is outside the 10-54 code range.

Blank ... Not imputed and reported age is not used
1 ... Reported age is used
2 ... Age is imputed

30-31 2 DMAGE
Age of Mother

This item is: a) computed using dates of birth of mother and of
delivery; b) reported; or c) imputed. This is the age item used
in NCHS publications.

10-54 ... Age in single years

32 1 MAGER9
Age of Mother Recode 9

1 ... Under 15 years
2 ... 15 - 19 years
3 ... 20 - 24 years
4 ... 25 - 29 years
5 ... 30 - 34 years
6 ... 35 - 39 years
7 ... 40 - 44 years
8 ... 45 - 49 years
9 ... 50 - 54 years

33 1 ORMOTH
Hispanic Origin of Mother

Hispanic origin is reported for all areas except Puerto Rico.

0 ... Non-Hispanic
1 ... Mexican
2 ... Puerto Rican
3 ... Cuban
4 ... Central or South American
5 ... Other and unknown Hispanic
9 ... Origin unknown or not stated

34 1 ORRACEM
Hispanic Origin and Race of Mother Recode

Hispanic origin is reported for all areas except Puerto Rico.

1 ... Mexican
2 ... Puerto Rican
3 ... Cuban
4 ... Central or South American
5 ... Other and unknown Hispanic
6 ... Non-Hispanic White
7 ... Non-Hispanic Black
8 ... Non-Hispanic other races
9 ... Origin unknown or not stated

35 1 MRACEIMP
Race of Mother Imputation Flag

Blank ... Race is not imputed
1 ... Race is imputed
2 ... All other races, formerly code 09, is imputed

36-37 2 MRACE
Race of Mother - Birth Record or for Unlinked Records
Race of Decedent from Death Record

Beginning with 1992 data, some areas started reporting additional
Asian or Pacific Islander codes for race. Codes 18-68 replace old
code 08 for these areas. Code 78 replaces old code 08 for all other
areas. For consistency with Census race code 09 (all other races)
used prior to 1992 has been imputed.

United States Occurrence
01 ... White
02 ... Black
03 ... American Indian (includes Aleuts and Eskimos)
04 ... Chinese
05 ... Japanese
06 ... Hawaiian (includes part-Hawaiian)
07 ... Filipino
18 ... Asian Indian
28 ... Korean
38 ... Samoan
48 ... Vietnamese
58 ... Guamanian
68 ... Other Asian or Pacific Islander in areas reporting
codes 18-58
78 ... Combined other Asian or Pacific Islander, includes
codes 18-68 for areas that do not report them
separately

36-37 2 MRACE
Race of Mother - Birth Record or for Unlinked Records
Race of Decedent from Death Record (Cond't)

Puerto Rico Occurrence
00 ... Other races
01 ... White
02 ... Black

Virgin Islands Occurrence
01 ... White
02 ... Black
03 ... American Indian (includes Aleuts and Eskimos)
04 ... Chinese
05 ... Japanese
06 ... Hawaiian (includes part-Hawaiian)
07 ... Filipino
08 ... Other Asian or Pacific Islander

Guam Occurrence
01 ... White
02 ... Black
03 ... American Indian (includes Aleuts and Eskimos)
04 ... Chinese
05 ... Japanese
06 ... Hawaiian (includes part-Hawaiian)
07 ... Filipino
08 ... Other Asian or Pacific Islander
58 ... Guamanian

38 1 MRACE3
Race of Mother Recode

1 ... White
2 ... Races other than White or Black
3 ... Black

39-40 2 DMEDUC
Education of Mother Detail

All areas report education of mother.

00 ... No formal education
01-08 ... Years of elementary school
09 ... 1 year of high school
10 ... 2 years of high school
11 ... 3 years of high school
12 ... 4 years of high school
13 ... 1 year of college
14 ... 2 years of college
15 ... 3 years of college
16 ... 4 years of college
17 ... 5 or more years of college
99 ... Not stated

41 1 MEDUC6
Education of Mother Recode

1 ... 0 - 8 years
2 ... 9 - 11 years
3 ... 12 years
4 ... 13 - 15 years
5 ... 16 years and over
6 ... Not stated

42 1 DMARIMP
Marital Status of Mother Imputation Flag

Blank ... Marital status is not imputed
1 ... Marital status is imputed

43 1 DMAR
Marital Status of Mother

Marital status is not reported by all areas. See reporting flags.

United States/Virgin Islands/Guam Occurrence
1 ... Married
2 ... Unmarried
9 ... Unknown or not stated

Puerto Rico Occurrence
1 ... Married
2 ... Unmarried parents living together
3 ... Unmarried parents not living together
9 ... Unknown or not stated

44-45 2 MPLBIR
Place of Birth of Mother

01 ... Alabama
02 ... Alaska
03 ... Arizona
04 ... Arkansas
05 ... California
06 ... Colorado
07 ... Connecticut
08 ... Delaware
09 ... District of Columbia
10 ... Florida
11 ... Georgia
12 ... Hawaii
13 ... Idaho
14 ... Illinois
15 ... Indiana
16 ... Iowa
17 ... Kansas
18 ... Kentucky
19 ... Louisiana
20 ... Maine
21 ... Maryland
22 ... Massachusetts
23 ... Michigan
24 ... Minnesota
25 ... Mississippi
26 ... Missouri
27 ... Montana
28 ... Nebraska
29 ... Nevada
30 ... New Hampshire
31 ... New Jersey
32 ... New Mexico
33 ... New York
34 ... North Carolina
35 ... North Dakota
36 ... Ohio
37 ... Oklahoma
38 ... Oregon
39 ... Pennsylvania
40 ... Rhode Island
41 ... South Carolina
42 ... South Dakota
43 ... Tennessee
44 ... Texas
45 ... Utah
46 ... Vermont
47 ... Virginia
48 ... Washington
49 ... West Virginia

44-45 2 MPLBIR
Place of Birth of Mother (Cond't)

50 ... Wisconsin
51 ... Wyoming
52 ... Puerto Rico
53 ... Virgin Islands
54 ... Guam
55 ... Canada
56 ... Cuba
57 ... Mexico
59 ... Remainder of the World
99 ... Not Classifiable

46 1 MPLBIRR
Place of Birth of Mother Recode

United States Occurrence
1 ... Born in the 50 States and D.C.
2 ... Born outside the 50 States and DC
3 ... Unknown or not stated

Puerto Rico/Virgin Island/ Guam Occurrence
Blank ... This item not recorded

47-48 2 DTOTORD
Detail Total Birth Order

Sum of live birth order and other terminations of pregnancy.
If either item is unknown, this item is made unknown.

01-40 ... Total number of live births and other
terminations of pregnancy
99 ... Unknown

49-50 2 DLIVORD
Detail Live Birth Order

Sum of live births now living and now dead plus one. If
either item is unknown, this item is made unknown.

00-31 ... Number of children born alive to mother
99 ... Unknown

51-52 2 MONPRE
Detail Month of Pregnancy Prenatal Care Began

00 ... No prenatal care
01 ... 1st month
02 ... 2nd month
03 ... 3rd month
04 ... 4th month
05 ... 5th month
06 ... 6th month
07 ... 7th month
08 ... 8th month
09 ... 9th month
99 ... Unknown or not stated

53 1 MPRE5
Month Prenatal Care Began Recode 5

1 ... 1st Trimester (1st-3rd month)
2 ... 2nd Trimester (4th-6th month)
3 ... 3rd Trimester (7th-9th month)
4 ... No prenatal care
5 ... Unknown or not stated

54-55 2 NPREVIST
Total Number of Prenatal Visits

00 ... No prenatal visits
01-48 ... Stated number of visits
49 ... 49 or more visits
99 ... Unknown or not stated

56 1 ADEQUACY
Adequacy of Care Recode (Kessner Index)

This code is based on a modified Kessner criterion. Month Prenatal
Care Began, Number of Prenatal Visits, and Gestation are the items
used to generate this recode.

1 ... Adequate
2 ... Intermediate
3 ... Inadequate
4 ... Unknown

57-59 3 R1
Reserved Positions

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

60 1 FAGERFLG
Reported Age of Father Used Flag

This position is flagged whenever the Father's reported age in
years is used. The reported age is used, if valid, when age
derived from date of birth is not available or when it is less
than 10.

Blank ... Reported age is not used
1 ... Reported age is used

61-62 2 DFAGE
Age of Father

This item is either computed from date of birth of father and
of child or is the reported age. This is the age item used in
NCHS publications.

10-98 ... Age in single years
99 ... Unknown or not stated

63 1 ORFATH
Hispanic Origin of Father

Hispanic origin is reported for all areas except Puerto Rico.

0 ... Non-Hispanic
1 ... Mexican
2 ... Puerto Rican
3 ... Cuban
4 ... Central or South American
5 ... Other and unknown Hispanic
9 ... Origin unknown or not stated

64 1 ORRACEF
Hispanic Origin and Race of Father Recode

Hispanic origin is reported for all areas except Puerto Rico.

65-66 2 FRACE
Race of Father

Beginning with 1992 data, some areas started reporting additional
Asian or Pacific Islander codes for race. See reporting flags.
Codes 18 -68 replace old code 08 for these areas. Code 78
replaces old code 08 for all other areas. Code 09 (all other
races) has been changed to 99.

United States Occurrence
01 ... White
02 ... Black
03 ... American Indian (includes Aleuts
and Eskimos)
04 ... Chinese
05 ... Japanese
06 ... Hawaiian (includes part-Hawaiian)
07 ... Filipino
18 ... Asian Indian
28 ... Korean
38 ... Samoan
48 ... Vietnamese
58 ... Guamanian
68 ... Other Asian or Pacific Islander
in areas reporting codes 18-58
78 ... Combined other Asian or Pacific Islander, includes
codes 18-68 for areas that do not report them separately
99 ... Unknown or not stated

Puerto Rico Occurrence
00 ... Other races
01 ... White
02 ... Black
99 ... Unknown or not stated

65-66 2 FRACE
Race of Father (Cond't)

67 1 PLDEL
Place or Facility of Delivery

1 ... Hospital
2 ... Freestanding Birthing Center
3 ... Clinic or Doctor's Office
4 ... A Residence
5 ... Other
9 ... Unknown or not stated

68 1 BIRATTND
Attendant at Delivery

1 ... Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)
2 ... Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.)
3 ... Certified Nurse Midwife (C.N.M.)
4 ... Other Midwife
5 ... Other
9 ... Unknown or not stated

69 1 R2
Reserved position

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

70 1 GESTESTM
Clinical Estimate of Gestation Used Flag

This position is flagged whenever the clinical estimate of
gestation is used. It is used when gestation could not be
computed or when the computed gestation is outside the 17-47
code range.

Blank ... Clinical Estimate is not used
1 ... Clinical Estimate is used

71-72 2 CLINGEST
Clinical Estimate of Gestation

Clinical estimate is not reported by all areas.
See reporting flags.

17-47 ... Estimated gestation in weeks
99 ... Unknown or not stated

73 1 GESTIMP
Gestation Imputation Flag

Blank ... Gestation is not imputed
1 ... Gestation is imputed

74-75 2 GESTAT
Gestation - Detail in Weeks

This item is: a) computed using dates of birth of child and last
normal menses; b) imputed from LMP date; c) the clinical estimate;
or d) unknown when there is insufficient data to impute or no valid
clinical estimate. This is the gestation item used in NCHS
publications.

17-47 ... 17th through 47th week of gestation
99 ... Unknown

76-77 2 GESTAT 10
GESTATION RECODE 10

01 ... Under 20 weeks
02 ... 20 - 27 weeks
03 ... 28 - 31 weeks
04 ... 32 - 35 weeks
05 ... 36 weeks
06 ... 37 - 39 weeks
07 ... 40 weeks
08 ... 41 weeks
09 ... 42 weeks and over
10 ... Not stated

78 1 CSEXIMP
Sex Imputation Flag

Blank ... Sex is not imputed
1 ... Sex is imputed

79 1 CSEX
Sex

1 ... Male
2 ... Female

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

80-87 8 BIRTHWEIGHT

Beginning in 1995, an imputation for not-stated birthweight was
added to reduce potential bias in the data (see section on Changes
beginning with the 1995 data year in the introductory text to this
documentation). The following imputation flag can be used to delete
imputed values for those researchers wishing to use only reported
birthweight data.

80 1 BWIF
Birth Weight Imputation Flag

Blank ... Birthweight is not imputed
1 ... Birthweight is imputed

81-84 4 DBIRWT
Birth Weight Detail in Grams (Imputed)

0227-8165 ... Number of grams
9999 ... Not stated birth weight

85-86 2 BIRWT12
Birth Weight Recode 12 (Imputed)

01 ... 499 grams or less
02 ... 500-999 grams
03 ... 1000-1499 grams
04 ... 1500-1999 grams
05 ... 2000-2499 grams
06 ... 2500-2999 grams
07 ... 3000-3499 grams
08 ... 3500-3999 grams
09 ... 4000-4499 grams
10 ... 4500-4999 grams
11 ... 5000-8165 grams
12 ... Unknown or not stated

87 1 BIRWT4
Birth Weight Recode 4 (Imputed)

1 ... 1499 grams or less
2 ... 1500-2499 grams
3 ... 2500 grams or more
4 ... Unknown or not stated

88 1 PLURIMP
Plurality Imputation Flag

Blank ... Plurality is not imputed
1 ... Plurality is imputed

89 1 DPLURAL
Plurality

1 ... Single
2 ... Twin
3 ... Triplet
4 ... Quadruplet
5 ... Quintuplet or higher

90-91 2 FMAPS
Five-Minute Apgar Score

Apgar score is not reported by all areas.
See reporting flags.

00-10 ... A score of 0-10
99 ... Unknown or not stated

92-186 95 MEDINFO
Medical and Health Data

Some States do not report an entire item while other States
do not report all of the categories within an item. If an
item is not reported, it is indicated by code zero in the
appropriate reporting flag. If a category within an item
is not reported it is indicated by code 8 in the position for
that category.

92-99 8 DELMETH
Method of Delivery

Each method is assigned a separate position, and the code
structure for each method (position) is:

1 ... The method was used
2 ... The method was not used
8 ... Method not on certificate
9 ... Method unknown or not stated

92 1 VAGINAL
Vaginal

93 1 VBAC
Vaginal Birth After Previous C-Section

94 1 PRIMAC
Primary C-Section

95 1 REPEAC
Repeat C-Section

96 1 FORCEP
Forceps

97 1 VACUUM
Vacuum

98 1 R3
Reserved Position

99 1 DELMETH5
Method of Delivery Recode

1 ... Vaginal (excludes Vaginal after previous C-section)
2 ... Vaginal birth after previous C section
3 ... Primary C-section
4 ... Repeat C-Section
5 ... Not stated

100-117 18 MEDRISK
Medical Risk Factors

Each risk factor is assigned a separate position, and
the code structure for each risk factor (position) is:

1 ... Factor reported
2 ... Factor not reported
8 ... Factor not on certificate
9 ... Factor not classifiable

100 1 MRFLAG
No Medical Risk Factors Reported Flag

Blank ... One or more medical risk factors coded,
one, eight, or nine
2 ... No medical risk factors reported. Each
factor is coded a two.

101 1 ANEMIA
Anemia (Hct.<30/Hgb.<10)

102 1 CARDIAC
Cardiac disease

103 1 LUNG
Acute or chronic lung disease

104 1 DIABETES
Diabetes

105 1 HERPES
Genital herpes

106 1 HYDRA
Hydramnios/Oligohydramnios

107 1 HEMO
Hemoglobinopathy

108 1 CHYPER
Hypertension, chronic

109 1 PHYPER
Hypertension, pregnancy-associated

110 1 ECLAMP
Eclampsia

111 1 INCERVIX
Incompetent cervix

112 1 PRE4000
Previous infant 4000+ grams

113 1 PRETERM
Previous preterm or small-for-gestational-age infant

114 1 RENAL
Renal disease

115 1 RH
Rh sensitization

116 1 UTERINE
Uterine bleeding

117 1 OTHERMR
Other Medical Risk Factors

118-128 11 OTHERRSK
Other Risk Factors for this Pregnancy

118-121 4 TOBACRSK
Tobacco Risks

118 1 TOBACCO
Tobacco Use During Pregnancy

1 ... Yes
2 ... No
9 ... Unknown or not stated

119-120 2 CIGAR
Average Number of Cigarettes Per Day

00-97 ... As stated
98 ... 98 or more cigarettes per day
99 ... Unknown or not stated

121 1 CIGAR6
Average Number of Cigarettes Per Day Recode

0 ... Nonsmoker
1 ... 1-5 cigarettes per day
2 ... 6-10 cigarettes per day
3 ... 11-20 cigarettes per day
4 ... 21-40 cigarettes per day
5 ... 41 or more cigarettes per day
6 ... Unknown or not stated

122-125 4 ALCOHRSK
Alcohol

122 1 ALCOHOL
Alcohol Use During Pregnancy

1 ... Yes
2 ... No
9 ... Unknown or not stated

123-124 2 DRINK
Average Number of Drinks Per Week

00-97 ... As stated
98 ... 98 or more drinks per week
99 ... Unknown or not stated

125 1 DRINK5
Average Number of Drinks Per Week Recode

0 ... Non drinker
1 ... 1 drink per week
2 ... 2 drinks per week
3 ... 3-4 drinks per week
4 ... 5 or more drinks per week
5 ... Unknown or not stated

126-128 3 WTGANRSK
Weight Gain During Pregnancy

126-127 2 WTGAIN
Weight Gain

00-97 ... Stated number of pounds
98 ... 98 pounds or more
99 ... Unknown or not stated

128 1 WTGAIN9
Weight Gain Recode

1 ... Less than 16 pounds
2 ... 16-20 pounds
3 ... 21-25 pounds
4 ... 26-30 pounds
5 ... 31-35 pounds
6 ... 36-40 pounds
7 ... 41-45 pounds
8 ... 46 or more pounds
9 ... Unknown or not stated

129-136 8 OBSTETRC
Obstetric Procedures

Each procedure is assigned a separate position, and the
code structure for each procedure (position) is:

1 ... Procedure reported
2 ... Procedure not reported
8 ... Procedure not on certificate
9 ... Procedure not classifiable

129 1 OBFLAG
Obstetric Flag

Blank ... One or more obstetric procedures coded,
one, eight, or nine
2 ... No obstetric procedures reported. Each
factor is coded a two.

130 1 AMNIO
Amniocentesis

131 1 MONITOR
Electronic fetal monitoring

132 1 INDUCT
Induction of labor

133 1 STIMULA
Stimulation of labor

134 1 TOCOL
Tocolysis

135 1 ULTRAS
Ultrasound

136 1 OTHEROB
Other Obstetric Procedures

137-153 17 LABOR
Complications of Labor and/or Delivery

Each complication is assigned a separate position, and the
code structure for each complication (position) is:

1 ... Complication reported
2 ... Complication not reported
8 ... Complication not on certificate
9 ... Complication not classifiable

137 1 FBFLAG
Labor Flag

Blank ... One or more labor and/or delivery complications
coded, one, eight, or nine
2 ... No labor and/or delivery complication reported.
Each factor is coded a two.

138 1 FEBRILE
Febrile (>100 degrees F. or 38 degrees C.)

139 1 MECONIUM
Meconium, moderate/heavy

140 1 RUPTURE
Premature rupture of membrane (>12 hours)

141 1 ABRUPTIO
Abruptio placenta

142 1 PREPLACE
Placenta previa

143 1 EXCEBLD
Other excessive bleeding

144 1 SEIZURE
Seizures during labor

145 1 PRECIP
Precipitous labor (<3 hours)

146 1 PROLONG
Prolonged Labor (>20 hours)

147 1 DYSFUNC
Dysfunctional labor

148 1 BREECH
Breech/Malpresentation

149 1 CEPHALO
Cephalopelvic disproportion

150 1 CORD
Cord prolapse

151 1 ANESTHE
Anesthetic complications

152 1 DISTRESS
Fetal distress

153 1 OTHERLB
Other Complications of Labor and/or Delivery

154-163 10 NEWBORN
Abnormal conditions of the Newborn

Each condition is assigned a separate position, and
the code structure for each condition (position)is:

1 ... Condition reported
2 ... Condition not reported
8 ... Condition not on certificate
9 ... Condition not classifiable

154 1 NBFLAG
Newborn Flag

Blank ... One or more abnormal conditions of the newborn
coded, one, eight, or nine
2 ... No abnormal condition of the newborn reported.
Each factor is coded a two.

155 1 NANEMIA
Anemia Hct.>39/Hgb.<13)

156 1 INJURY
Birth injury

157 1 ALCOSYN
Fetal alcohol syndrome

158 1 HYALINE
Hyaline membrane disease

159 1 MECONSYN
Meconium aspiration syndrome

160 1 VENL30
Assisted ventilation, less than 30 minutes

161 1 VEN30M
Assisted ventilation, 30 minutes or more

162 1 NSEIZ
Seizures

163 1 OTHERAB
Other Abnormal Conditions of the Newborn

164-186 23 CONGENIT
Congenital Anomalies

Each anomaly is assigned a separate position, and the code
structure for each anomaly (position) is:

1 ... Anomaly reported
2 ... Anomaly not reported
8 ... Anomaly not on certificate
9 ... Anomaly not classifiable

164 1 CGFLAG
Congenital Flag

Blank ... One or more congenital anomalies coded, one,
eight, or nine
2 ... No congenital anomaly is reported. Each
factor is coded a two.

165 1 ANEN
Anencephalus

166 1 SPINA
Spina bifida/Meningocele

167 1 HYDRO
Hydrocephalus

168 1 MICROCE
Microcephalus

169 1 NERVOUS
Other central nervous system anomalies

170 1 HEART
Heart malformations

171 1 CIRCUL
Other circulatory/respiratory anomalies

172 1 RECTAL
Rectal atresia/stenosis

173 1 TRACHEO
Tracheo-esophageal fistula/Esophageal atresia

174 1 OMPHALO
Omphalocele/Gastroschisis

175 1 GASTRO
Other gastrointestinal anomalies

176 1 GENITAL
Malformed genitalia

177 1 RENALAGE
Renal agenesis

178 1 UROGEN
Other urogenital anomalies

179 1 CLEFTLP
Cleft lip/palate

180 1 ADACTYLY
Polydactyly/Syndactyly/Adactyly

181 1 CLUBFOOT
Club foot

182 1 HERNIA
Diaphragmatic hernia

183 1 MUSCULO
Other musculoskeletal/integumental anomalies

184 1 DOWNS
Down's syndrome

185 1 CHROMO
Other chromosomal anomalies

186 1 OTHERCON
Other congenital anomalies

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

187-203 17 FLRES
Reporting Flags for Place of Residence

These positions contain flags to indicate whether or not
the specified item is included on the birth certificate of
the State of residence or of the SMSA of residence. The
code structure of each flag (position) is:

0 ... The item is not reported
1 ... The item is reported or partially reported.

187 1 ORIGM
Origin of mother

188 1 ORIGF
Origin of father

189 1 EDUCM
Education of mother

190 1 R4
Reserved Position

191 1 GESTE
Clinical estimate of gestation

192 1 R5
Reserved position

193 1 FMAPSRF
5-minute Apgar score

194 1 DELMETRF
Method of delivery

195 1 MEDRSK
Medical risk factors

196 1 TOBUSE
Tobacco use

197 1 ALCUSE
Alcohol use

198 1 WTGN
Weight gain

199 1 OBSTRC
Obstetric procedures

200 1 CLABOR
Complications of labor and/or delivery

201 1 ABNML
Abnormal conditions of newborn

202 1 CONGAN
Congenital anomalies

203 1 API flag
Race codes 18-68 reported (beginning with 1992 data)

204 1 CDOBMIMP
Month of Birth of Child Imputation Flag

Blank ... Month is not imputed
1 ... Month is imputed

205-206 2 BIRMON
Month of Birth

01 ... January
02 ... February
03 ... March
04 ... April
05 ... May
06 ... June
07 ... July
08 ... August
09 ... September
10 ... October
11 ... November
12 ... December

207-208 2 R6
Reserved Position

209 1 WEEKDAYB
Day of Week Child Born

1 ... Sunday
2 ... Monday
3 ... Tuesday
4 ... Wednesday
5 ... Thursday
6 ... Friday
7 ... Saturday

210 1 FLGND
Flag Indicating Records Included in Both
Numerator and Denominator Files

This variable is included in the denominator file only,
and identifies a record which is also included in the
numerator file. Please note that not all infant deaths
in the numerator file are represented in the denominator
file, because some of the infants who died in 1998 were
born in 1997.

1 ... Record also included in numerator file
Blank ... Record not included in numerator file

Here ends the Denominator file. Documentation for the Mortality Section of the
Numerator (Linked) file begins on the next page.

1998 Mortality Section of Numerator (Linked) Record

Locations 211-535 contain data from the Death Certificate. Residence items in the
Denominator Record and in the natality section of the Numerator (Linked) Record
refer to the usual place of residence of the Mother; whereas in the mortality
section of the Numerator (Linked) Record, these items refer to the place of residence
of the Decedent.

Item Item Variable Name,
Location Length Item and Code Outline

211-213 3 AGED
Age at Death in Days

The generated age at death in days is calculated from the
date of death on the death certificate minus the date of
birth on the birth certificate unless the reported age of
death is less than 2 days, then the reported age is used.
If the exact date of birth and/or death is unknown, the age
is imputed.

000-364 ... Number of days

214 1 AGER5
Infant Age Recode 5

1 ... Under 1 hour
2 ... 1-23 hours
3 ... 1-6 days
4 ... 7-27 days (late neonatal)
5 ... 28 days and over (postneonatal)

215 1 ACCIDPL
Place of Accident for Causes E850-E869
and E880-E928

Blank ... Causes other than E850-E869 and E880-E928
0 ... Home
1 ... Farm
2 ... Mine and quarry
3 ... Industrial place and premises
4 ... Place for recreation and sport
5 ... Street and highway
6 ... Public building
7 ... Resident institution
8 ... Other specified places
9 ... Place of accident not specified

216-219 4 UCOD
ICD Code (9th Revision)

See the International Classification of Diseases, 1975
Revision, Volume 1. For injuries and poisoning, the external
cause is coded (E800-E999) rather than the Nature of Injury
(800-999). These positions do not include the letter E for
the external cause of injury. For those causes that do not
have a 4th digit, location 219 is blank.

220-222 3 UCODR61
61 Infant Cause Recode

A recode of the ICD cause code into 61 groups for NCHS
publications. Further back in this document is a complete
list of recodes and the causes included.

010-680 ... Code range (not inclusive)

223-230 8 RECWT
Record weight

Beginning in 1995, a record weight was added to the linked
file to adjust for the approximately 2-3% of records each
year which cannot be linked to their corresponding birth
certificates (see introduction to this tape documentation
for further details). These weights are used to produce
all NCHS linked file tables, including Documentation tables
1-5 included in this tape documentation. The general format
for this record weight is the number one followed by a decimal
point and six decimal places as follows:

1.XXXXXX

261-504 244 MULTCOND
Multiple Conditions

See the "International Classification of Diseases", 1975
Revision, Volume 1. Both the entity-axis and record-axis
conditions are coded according to this revision (9th).

261-262 2 EANUM
Number of Entity-Axis Conditions

00-20 ... Code range

263-402 140 ENTITY
ENTITY - AXIS CONDITIONS

Space has been provided for a maximum of 20 conditions.
Each condition takes 7 positions in the record. Records
that do not have 20 conditions are blank in the unused
area.

Position 1: Part/line number on certificate

1 ... Part I, line 1 (a)
2 ... Part I, line 2 (b)
3 ... Part I, line 3 (c)
4 ... Part I, line 4 (d)
5 ... Part I, line 5 (e)
6 ... Part II,

Position 2: Sequence of condition within part/line

1-7 ... Code range

Position 3 - 6: Condition code (ICD 9th Revision)

Position 7: Nature of Injury Flag

1 ... Indicates that the code in positions 3-6 is a
Nature of Injury code
0 ... All other codes

263-269 7 1st Condition

270-276 7 2nd Condition

277-283 7 3rd Condition

284-290 7 4th Condition

291-297 7 5th Condition

298-304 7 6th Condition

305-311 7 7th Condition

312-318 7 8th Condition

319-325 7 9th Condition

326-332 7 10th Condition

333-339 7 11th Condition

340-346 7 12th Condition

347-353 7 13th Condition

354-360 7 14th Condition

361-367 7 15th Condition

368-374 7 16th Condition

375-381 7 17th Condition

382-388 7 18th Condition

389-395 7 19th Condition

396-402 7 20th Condition

403-404 2 RANUM
Number of Record-Axis Conditions

00-20 ... Code range

405-504 100 RECORD
RECORD - AXIS CONDITIONS

Space has been provided for a maximum of 20 conditions.
Each condition takes 5 positions in the record. Records
that do not have 20 conditions are blank in the unused area.

Positions 1-4: Condition code (ICD 9th Revision)

Position 5: Nature of Injury Flag

1 ... Indicates that the code in positions 1-4 is a
Nature of Injury code

0 ... All other codes

405-409 5 1st Condition

410-414 5 2nd Condition

415-419 5 3rd Condition

420-424 5 4th Condition

425-429 5 5th Condition

430-434 5 6th Condition

435-439 5 7th Condition

440-444 5 8th Condition

445-449 5 9th Condition

450-454 5 10th Condition

455-459 5 11th Condition

460-464 5 12th Condition

465-469 5 13th Condition

470-474 5 14th Condition

475-479 5 15th Condition

480-484 5 16th Condition

485-489 5 17th Condition

490-494 5 18th Condition

495-499 5 19th Condition

500-504 5 20th Condition

505 1 RESSTATD
Resident Status - Death

United States Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: State and county of occurrence and
residence are the same.
2 ... INTRASTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence and
residence are the same, but county is different.
3 ... INTERSTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence and
residence are different, but both are in the 50
States and D.C.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: State of occurrence is one of
the 50 States or the District of Columbia, but place
of residence is outside of the 50 States and D.C.

505 1 RESSTATD
Resident Status - Death (Cond't)

Puerto Rico Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: State and county of occurrence and
residence are the same.
2 ... INTRASTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence and
residence are the same, but county is different.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: Occurred in Puerto Rico to a
resident of any other place.

Virgin Islands Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: State and county of occurrence and
residence are the same.
2 ... INTRASTATE NONRESIDENTS: State of occurrence and
residence are the same, but county is different.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: Occurred in the Virgin Islands
to a resident of any other place.

Guam Occurrence
1 ... RESIDENTS: Occurred in Guam to a resident of
Guam or to a resident of the U.S.
4 ... FOREIGN RESIDENTS: Occurred in Guam to a
resident of any place other than Guam or the U.S.

506-507 2 DRSTATE
Expanded State of Residence - NCHS Codes - Deaths

This item is designed to separately identify New York City
records from other New York State records.

506-507 2 DRSTATE
Expanded State of Residence - NCHS Codes - Deaths (Cond't)

United States Occurrence
21 ... Maryland
22 ... Massachusetts
23 ... Michigan
24 ... Minnesota
25 ... Mississippi
26 ... Missouri
27 ... Montana
28 ... Nebraska
29 ... Nevada
30 ... New Hampshire
31 ... New Jersey
32 ... New Mexico
33 ... New York
34 ... New York city
35 ... North Carolina
36 ... North Dakota
37 ... Ohio
38 ... Oklahoma
39 ... Oregon
40 ... Pennsylvania
41 ... Rhode Island
42 ... South Carolina
43 ... South Dakota
44 ... Tennessee
45 ... Texas
46 ... Utah
47 ... Vermont
48 ... Virginia
49 ... Washington
50 ... West Virginia
51 ... Wisconsin
52 ... Wyoming
53-58,60 ... Foreign Residents
53 ... Puerto Rico
54 ... Virgin Islands
55 ... Guam
56 ... Canada
57 ... Cuba
58 ... Mexico
60 ... Remainder of the World

Puerto Rico Occurrence
53 ... Puerto Rico
01-52,54-58,60 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S.
for specific code structure.

506-507 2 DRSTATE
Expanded State of Residence - NCHS Codes -
Deaths (Cond't)

Virgin Islands Occurrence
54 ... Virgin Islands
01-53,55-58,60 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S.
for specific code structure.

Guam Occurrence
55 ... Guam
01-52 ... U.S. resident is also considered a resident
of Guam.
53,54,58,60 ... Foreign Residents: Refer to U.S. for
specific code structure.

508-512 5 FIPSOCCD
Federal Information Processing Standards
(FIPS) Geographic Codes (Occurrence) - Death

508-509 2 STOCCFIPD
State of Occurrence (FIPS) - Death

508-509 2 STOCCFIPD
State of Occurrence (FIPS) - Death (Cond't)

United States
31 ... Nebraska
32 ... Nevada
33 ... New Hampshire
34 ... New Jersey
35 ... New Mexico
36 ... New York
37 ... North Carolina
38 ... North Dakota
39 ... Ohio
40 ... Oklahoma
41 ... Oregon
42 ... Pennsylvania
44 ... Rhode Island
45 ... South Carolina
46 ... South Dakota
47 ... Tennessee
48 ... Texas
49 ... Utah
50 ... Vermont
51 ... Virginia
53 ... Washington
54 ... West Virginia
55 ... Wisconsin
56 ... Wyoming

Puerto Rico
72 ... Puerto Rico

Virgin Islands
78 ... Virgin Islands

Guam
66 ... Guam

510-512 3 CNTOCFIPD
County of Occurrence (FIPS) - Death

001-nnn ... Counties and county equivalents (independent
and coextensive cities) are numbered alphabetically
within each State. (Note: To uniquely identify
a county, both the State and county codes must
be used.)

999 ... County with less than 250,000 population

513-517 5 FIPSRESD
Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)
Geographic Codes (Residence) - Death

513-514 2 STRESFIPD
State of Residence (FIPS) - Death

513-514 2 STRESFIPD
State of Residence (FIPS) - Death (Cond't)

United States Occurrence
41 ... Oregon
42 ... Pennsylvania
44 ... Rhode Island
45 ... South Carolina
46 ... South Dakota
47 ... Tennessee
48 ... Texas
49 ... Utah
50 ... Vermont
51 ... Virginia
53 ... Washington
54 ... West Virginia
55 ... Wisconsin
56 ... Wyoming

Puerto Rico Occurrence
72 ... Puerto Rico
00-56,
66,78 ... Foreign resident: Refer to U.S. for specific
code structure.

Virgin Islands Occurrence
78 ... Virgin Islands
00-56,
66,72 ... Foreign resident: Refer to U.S. for specific
code structure.

Guam Occurrence
66 ... Guam
01-56,
00,72,78 ... Foreign resident: Refer to U.S. for specific
code structure.

515-517 3 CNTYRFPD
County of Residence (FIPS) - Death

000 ... Foreign residents
001-nnn ... Counties and county equivalents (independent
and coextensive cities) are numbered alphabetically
within each State (Note: To uniquely identify
a county, both the State and county codes must
be used.) A complete list of counties is shown
in the Geographic Code Outline further back in
this document.

999 ... County with less than 250,000 population

518-522 5 PLRES
Place (City) of Residence (FIPS)

A complete list of cities is shown in the Geographic code
outline further back in this document.

00000 ... Foreign residents
00001-nnnnn ... Code range
99999 ... Balance of county; or city less than
250,000 population

523 1 HOSPD
Hospital and Patient Status

1 ... Hospital, Clinic or Medical Center - Inpatient
2 ... Hospital, Clinic or Medical Center - Outpatient or
admitted to Emergency Room
3 ... Hospital, Clinic or Medical Center - Dead on
arrival
4 ... Hospital, Clinic or Medical Center - Patient status
unknown
5 ... Nursing home
6 ... Residence
7 ... Other
9 ... Place of death unknown

524-527 4 DTHYR
Year of Death

1998 ... Death occurred in 1998

528-529 2 DTHMON
Month of Death
01 ... January
02 ... February
03 ... March
04 ... April
05 ... May
06 ... June
07 ... July
08 ... August
09 ... September
10 ... October
11 ... November
12 ... December

530-531 2 R9
Reserved Position

532 1 WEEKDAYD
Day of Week of Death
1 ... Sunday
2 ... Monday
3 ... Tuesday
4 ... Wednesday
5 ... Thursday
6 ... Friday
7 ... Saturday
9 ... Unknown

533-535 3 R10
Reserved positions

Listing of Counties Identified in the Linked Data Set Vital Statistics Geographic Code Outline Effective With 1998 Data

   State      County     State and County Name 

    01                     Alabama
               073            Jefferson
               097            Mobile
    02                     Alaska
    04                     Arizona
               013            Maricopa
               019            Pima
    05                     Arkansas
               119            Pulaski
    06                     California
               001           Alameda
               013           Contra Costa>
               019           Fresno
               029           Kern
               037           Los Angeles
               053           Monterey
               059           Orange
               065           Riverside
               067           Sacramento
               071           San Bernardino
               073           San Diego
               075           San Francisco, coext. with San Francisco city
               077           San Joaquin
               081           San Mateo
               083           Santa Barbara
               085           Santa Clara
               095           Solano
               097           Sonoma
               099           Stanislaus
               107           Tulare
               111           Ventura
    08                     Colorado
               001           Adams
               005           Arapahoe
               031           Denver, coext. with Denver city
               041           El Paso
               059           Jefferson
    09                     Connecticut
               001           Fairfield
               003           Hartford
               009           New Haven
               011           New London
    10                     Delaware
               003           New Castle
    11                     District of Columbia
               001           District of Columbia
    12                     Florida
               009           Brevard
               011           Broward
               025           Dade
               031           Duval
               033           Escambia
               057           Hillsborough
               071           Lee
               095           Orange
               099           Palm Beach
               101           Pasco
               103           Pinellas
               105           Polk
               115           Sarasota
               117           Seminole
               127           Volusia
    13                    Georgia
               067           Cobb
               089           De Kalb
               121           Fulton
               135           Gwinnett
    15                     Hawaii
               003           Honolulu
    16                     Idaho

   State     County     State and County Name

    17                     Illinois
               031           Cook
               043           Du Page
               089           Kane
               097           Lake
               163           St. Clair
               197           Will
               201           Winnebago
    18                     Indiana
               003           Allen
               089           Lake
               097           Marion
    19                     Iowa
               153           Polk
    20                     Kansas
               091           Johnson
               173           Sedgwick
    21                     Kentucky
               111           Jefferson
    22                     Louisiana
               033           East Baton Rouge
               051           Jefferson
               071           Orleans, coext. with New Orleans city
    23                     Maine
    24                     Maryland
               003           Anne Arundel
               005           Baltimore
               510           Baltimore city
               031           Montgomery
               033           Prince George's
    25                     Massachusetts
               005           Bristol
               009           Essex
               013           Hampden
               017           Middlesex
               021           Norfolk
               023           Plymouth
               025           Suffolk
               027           Worcester

   State     County     State and County Name

    26                     Michigan
               049           Genesee
               065           Ingham
               081           Kent
               099           Macomb
               125           Oakland
               161           Washtenaw
               163           Wayne
    27                     Minnesota
               037           Dakota
               053           Hennepin
               123           Ramsey
    28                     Mississippi
               049           Hinds
    29                     Missouri
               095           Jackson
               189           St. Louis
               510           St. Louis city
    30                     Montana
    31                     Nebraska
               055           Douglas
    32                     Nevada
               003           Clark
               031           Washoe
    33                     New Hampshire
               011           Hillsborough
    34                     New Jersey
               003           Bergen
               005           Burlington
               007           Camden
               013           Essex
               017           Hudson
               021           Mercer
               023           Middlesex
               025           Monmouth
               027           Morris
               029           Ocean

   State     County     State and County Name

    34                     New Jersey
               031           Passaic
               039           Union
    35                     New Mexico
               001           Bernalillo
    36                     New York
               001           Albany
               027           Dutchess
               029           Erie
               055           Monroe
               059           Nassau
               085           Staten Island borough, Richmond county
               081           Queens borough, Queens county
               061           Manhattan borough, New York county
               047           Brooklyn borough, Kings county
               005           Bronx borough, Bronx county
               065           Oneida
               067           Onondaga
               071           Orange
               087           Rockland
               103           Suffolk
               119           Westchester
    37                     North Carolina
               051           Cumberland
               067           Forsyth
               081           Guilford
               119           Mecklenburg
               183           Wake
    38                     North Dakota
    39                     Ohio
               017           Butler
               035           Cuyahoga
               049           Franklin
               061           Hamilton
               093           Lorain
               095           Lucas
               099           Mahoning
               113           Montgomery
               151           Stark
               153           Summit

   State     County     State and County Name

    40                     Oklahoma
               109           Oklahoma
               143           Tulsa
    41                     Oregon
               005           Clackamas
               039           Lane
               051           Multnomah
               067           Washington
    42                     Pennsylvania
               003           Allegheny
               011           Berks
               017           Bucks
               029           Chester
               045           Delaware
               049           Erie
               071           Lancaster
               077           Lehigh
               079           Luzerne
               091           Montgomery
               101           Philadelphia, coext. with Philadelphia city
               129           Westmoreland
               133           York
    44                     Rhode Island
                   007           Providence
    45                     South Carolina
               019           Charleston
               045           Greenville
               079           Richland
    46                     South Dakota
    47                     Tennessee
               037           Davidson
               065           Hamilton
               093           Knox
               157           Shelby
    48                     Texas
               029           Bexar
               061           Cameron
               085           Collin
               113           Dallas

   State     County     State and County Name

    48                     Texas
               121           Denton
               141           El Paso
               201           Harris
               215           Hidalgo
               355           Nueces
               439           Tarrant
               453           Travis
    49                     Utah
               035           Salt Lake
               049           Utah
    50                     Vermont
    51                     Virginia
               059           Fairfax
               710           Norfolk city
               810           Virginia Beach city
    53                     Washington
               033           King
               053           Pierce
               061           Snohomish
               063           Spokane
    54                     West Virginia
    55                     Wisconsin
               025           Dane
               079           Milwaukee
               133           Waukesha
    56                   Wyoming
    72                   Puerto Rico
               127           San Juan
    78                   Virgin Islands
    66         010           Guam
    00         000           Canada
    00         000           Cuba
    00         000           Mexico
    00         000           Remainder of World

Listing of Cities/Places Identified in the Linked Data Set Vital Statistics Geographic Code Outline Effective With 1998 Data

       FIPS Codes
  State     City/Place
                        State and City/Place Name

   01                   Alabama
              07000          Birmingham
   02                   Alaska
   04                   Arizona
              46000          Mesa
              55000          Phoenix
              77000          Tucson
   05                   Arkansas
   06                   California
              02000          Anaheim
              27000          Fresno
              43000          Long Beach
              44000          Los Angeles
              53000          Oakland
              64000          Sacramento
              66000          San Diego
              67000          San Francisco
              68000          San Jose
              69000          Santa Ana
   08                   Colorado

              16000          Colorado Springs
              20000          Denver
   09                   Connecticut
   10                   Delaware
   11                   District of Columbia
              50000          Washington
   12                   Florida
              35000          Jacksonville
              45000          Miami
              71000          Tampa
   13                   Georgia
              04000          Atlanta
   15                   Hawaii 
              17000          Honolulu
   16                   Idaho
   17                   Illinois
              14000          Chicago
   18                   Indiana
 	           36000          Indianapolis
   19                   Iowa
   20                   Kansas
              79000          Wichita

       FIPS Codes
  State     City/Place
                        State and City/Place Name

   21                   Kentucky
              48000          Louisville
   22                   Louisiana
              55000          New Orleans
   23                   Maine
   24                   Maryland
              04000          Baltimore
   25                   Massachusetts
              07000          Boston
   26                   Michigan
              22000          Detroit
   27                   Minnesota
              43000          Minneapolis
              58000          St. Paul
   28                   Mississippi
   29                   Missouri
              38000          Kansas City
              65000          St. Louis
   30                   Montana
   31                   Nebraska
              37000          Omaha
   32                   Nevada
              40000          Las Vegas
   33                   New Hampshire
   34                   New Jersey
              51000          Newark
   35                   New Mexico
              02000          Albuquerque
   36                   New York
              51000          Bronx borough, Bronx county
              11000          Buffalo
              51000          Manhattan borough, New York county
              51000          Queens borough, Queens county
              51000          Staten Island borough, Richmond county
   37                   North Carolina
              12000          Charlotte
   38                   North Dakota
   39                   Ohio
              15000          Cincinnati
              16000          Cleveland
              18000          Columbus
              77000          Toledo
   40                   Oklahoma
              55000          Oklahoma City
              75000          Tulsa
   41                   Oregon
              59000          Portland
   42                   Pennsylvania
              60000          Philadelphia
              61000          Pittsburgh
   44                   Rhode Island

        FIPS Codes
  State     City/Place
                        State and City/Place Name

   45                   South Carolina
   46                   South Dakota
   47                   Tennessee
              48000          Memphis
              52010          Nashville-Davidson
   48                   Texas
              04000          Arlington
              05000          Austin
              17000          Corpus Christi
              19000          Dallas
              24000          El Paso
              27000          Fort Worth
              35000          Houston
              65000          San Antonio
   49                   Utah
   50                   Vermont
   51                   Virginia
              57000          Norfolk
              82000          Virginia Beach
   53                   Washington
              63000          Seattle
   54                   West Virginia
   55                   Wisconsin
              53000          Milwaukee
   56                   Wyoming
   72         00000     Puerto Rico
   78         00000     Virgin Islands
   66         00000     Guam
   00         00000     Canada
   00         00000     Cuba
   00         00000     Mexico
   00         00000     Remainder of World

     Ninth Revision  61 Causes of Death Adapted for use by DVS
       ST:  1 = Subtotal   Limited: Sex: 1 = Males; 2 = Females
 Length = of Cause Title   Age: 1 = 5 & Over; 2 = 10-54; 3 = 28 Days & Over

      *****  Cause Subtotals are not Identified in this File  *****

 61     S Limited Len-
Recode  T Sex Age gth Cause Title And ICD-9 Codes Included

 010              039 Certain intestinal infections (008-009)
 020              020 Whooping cough (033)
 030              029 Meningococcal infection (036)
 040           3  016 Septicemia (038)
 050              024 Viral diseases (045-079)
 060              025 Congenital syphilis (090)
 070              110 Remainder of infectious and parasitic diseases (001-007,010-032,
                             034-035,037,039-041,*042-*044,080-088,091-139)
 080              089 Malignant neoplasms, including neoplasms of lymphatic and
                             hematopoietic tissues (140-208)
 090              108 Benign neoplasms, carcinoma in situ, and neoplasms of uncertain
                             behavior and of unspecified nature (210-239)
 100              030 Diseases of thymus gland (254)
 110              023 Cystic fibrosis (277.0)
 120              052 Diseases of blood and blood-forming organs (280-289)
 130              020 Meningitis (320-322)
 140              059 Other diseases of nervous system and sense organs (323-389)
 150              044 Acute upper respiratory infections (460-465)
 160              042 Bronchitis and bronchiolitis (466,490-491)
 170    1         033 Pneumonia and influenza (480-487)
 180              021   Pneumonia (480-486)
 190              017   Influenza (487)
 200              061 Remainder of diseases of respiratory system (470-478,492-519)
 210              093 Hernia of abdominal cavity and intestinal obstruction without
                             mention of hernia (550-553,560)
 220              075 Gastritis, duodenitis, and noninfective enteritis and
                             colitis (535,555-558)
 230              067 Remainder of diseases of digestive system (520-534,536-543,562-579)
 240    1         030 Congenital anomalies (740-759)
 250              042   Anencephalus and similar anomalies (740)
 260              020   Spina bifida (741)
 270              034   Congenital hydrocephalus (742.3)
 280              092   Other congenital anomalies of central nervous system and
                             eye (742.0-742.2,742.4-742.9,743)
 290              041   Congenital anomalies of heart (745-746)
 300              056   Other congenital anomalies of circulatory system (747)
 310              050   Congenital anomalies of respiratory system (748)
 320              052   Congenital anomalies of digestive system (749-751)
 330              056   Congenital anomalies of genitourinary system (752-753)
 340              058   Congenital anomalies of musculoskeletal system (754-756)
 350              025   Down's syndrome (758.0)
 360              043   Other chromosomal anomalies (758.1-758.9)
 370              062   All other and unspecified congenital anomalies (744,757,759)

     Ninth Revision  61 Causes of Death Adapted for use by DVS
       ST:  1 = Subtotal   Limited: Sex: 1 = Males; 2 = Females
 Length = of Cause Title   Age: 1 = 5 & Over; 2 = 10-54; 3 = 28 Days & Over

      *****  Cause Subtotals are not Identified in this File  *****

 61     S Limited Len-
Recode  T Sex Age gth Cause Title And ICD-9 Codes Included

 380    1         064 Certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (760-779)
 390              091   Newborn affected by maternal conditions which may be unrelated to
                             present pregnancy (760)
 400              063   Newborn affected by maternal complications of pregnancy (761)
 410              074   Newborn affected by complications of placenta, cord, and
                             membranes (762)
 420              069   Newborn affected by other complications of labor and
                             delivery (763)
 430              048   Slow fetal growth and fetal malnutrition (764)
 440              077   Disorders relating to short gestation and unspecified low
                             birthweight (765)
 450              065   Disorders relating to long gestation and high birthweight (766)
 460              020   Birth trauma (767)
 470    1         047   Intrauterine hypoxia and birth asphyxia (768)
 480              051     Fetal distress in liveborn infant (768.2-768.4)
 490              032     Birth asphyxia (768.5-768.9)
 500              037   Respiratory distress syndrome (769)
 510              047   Other respiratory conditions of newborn (770)
 520              051   Infections specific to the perinatal period (771)
 530              027   Neonatal hemorrhage (772)
 540              094   Hemolytic disease of newborn, due to isoimmunization, and other
                             perinatal jaundice (773-774)
 550              088   Syndrome of "infant of a diabetic mother" and neonatal diabetes
                             mellitus (775.0-775.1)
 560              040   Hemorrhagic disease of newborn (776.0)
 570              098   All other and ill-defined conditions originating in the perinatal
                             period (775.2-775.9,776.1-779)
 580    1         053 Symptoms, signs, and ill-defined conditions (780-799)
 590              038   Sudden infant death syndrome (798.0)
 600              075   Symptoms, signs, and all other ill-defined
                             conditions (780-797,798.1-799)
 610    1         041 Accidents and adverse effects (E800-E949)
 620              118   Inhalation and ingestion of food or other object causing
                             obstruction of respiratory tract or suffocation (E911-E912)
 630              042   Accidental mechanical suffocation (E913)
 640              067   Other accidental causes and adverse effects (E800-E910,E914-E949)
 650    1         020 Homicide (E960-E969)
 660              047   Child battering and other maltreatment (E967)
 670              038   Other homicide (E960-E966,E968-E969)
 680              027 All other causes (Residual)

Live Birth and Infant Deaths Documentation Tables

Table 1 - Live Births/Infant Deaths By Occurence

Table 2 - Live Births/Infant Death By Race of Mother

Table 3 - Live Births/Infant Deaths By Birth Weight

Table 4 - Live Births/Infant Death By Birht Weight and Race of Mother

Table 5 - 10 Major Causes of Infant Death

Table 6 - Unlinked Infant Deaths

This page last reviewed: Wednesday, August 29, 2007

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	All races	White	Black
Infant	98.4%	98.3%	98.5%
Neonatal	98.2%	98.1%	98.3%
Postneonatal	99.1%	99.1%	99.0%