Survey
description
This file contains all fetal deaths occurring in the United States and the
District of Columbia. Beginning in 1994, fetal deaths for Puerto Rico,
Virgin Islands, and Guam are included on the data file but are provided as
separate data sets. Fetal deaths occurring to U.S. citizens outside the
United States are not included.
Data are obtained from
fetal death reports registered for fetal deaths occurring in each State.
Registration requirements vary. Most areas require reporting fetal deaths
of gestations of 20 weeks or more; some require reporting of all periods
of gestation.
Data
file description
The data files
include one record for each fetal death in the sample. Fetal death report
numbers are not included.
List
of data file variables at a glance Data year
Residence of mother:1
State2
County2
City3
Population
size
Standard
metropolitan statistical area2,
3
Metropolitan
and nonmetropolitan counties
Age of:
Father
(single years, age 10 and over)
Mother
(single years, age 10-49)
Alcohol use4, 5
Attendant at delivery
Birth weight (in grams)
Complications of labor or delivery4,
5
Congenital anomalies4, 5
Day of week of delivery
Education of mother and father4,
5(single years, 0-17)
Gestation period (single weeks, 2-47)
Hispanic origin of mother and father4,
5
Marital status
Medical risk factors4, 5
Method of delivery4, 5
Obstetric procedures4, 5
Place of occurrence (State,2
county2)
Place of delivery
Plurality
Pregnancy history:
Born
alive, now living
Born
alive, now dead
Interval
since last live birth (in months)5
Live-birth
order
Month/year
of last live birth5
Other
terminations
Total
birth order
Prenatal care:
Month
of pregnancy care began
Number
of prenatal visits
Race of:
Child
(9 categories)6
Father
(10 categories)7
Mother
(9 categories)7
Sex of child
Tobacco use4, 5
Weight gain during pregnancy4
(single pounds, 0-98)5 ____________________________________________________ 1The
place of residence for mothers who were nonresidents of the United States
has been coded to the country of residence. 2Includes FIPS codes as well as NCHS codes. 3Includes data for areas with a population
of 100,000 persons or more. 4Applicable only for those States having
information on the report. 5Data collection of this variable began in
1989. 6Available 1982-92. 7Beginning 1992, additional categories are
available for some States.
Data
file technical characteristics
The following list describes the specific characteristics of each file for
each data year.
Data
year
Number
of
records
1995
63,170
1994
66,091
1993
71,181
1992
70,929
1991
63,265
1990
64,349
1989
61,295
1988
59,935
1987
59,358
1986
59,343
1985
59,960
1984
59,863
1983
60,584
1982
62,352
Puerto
Rico, Virgin Islands, and Guam data sets
Data
year
Number
of
records
1995
718
1994
743
Geographic
coverage
Place of fetal death is classified by State and county. In residence
classification, all fetal deaths are allocated to the usual place of
residence of the mother as reported on the fetal death report and are
classified by State, county, and city. For data years 1982-94, cities of
100,000 persons or more are classified. Geographic classification for
1982-93 is based on the 1980 census enumeration. Geographic classification
for 1994-96 is based on the 1990 census enumeration.
Data
availability
Fetal death data
are collected annually. Years from 1982 through 1995 are available
together on a single CD-ROM. Data for 1991 are available alone on a
separate CD-ROM. Data from the 1995-98 fetal death files are
combined with data from the linked birth and infant death files and are
contained on the Perinatal Mortality
Data File CD-ROM.
Ordering
information
Fetal death ASCII data for years 1982 through 1995
can only be
purchased from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). The
Perinatal Mortality Data File CD-ROM for years 1995-1999 in the SETS
format can be purchased from NTIS and/or GPO. Check for availability
and contact NTISand/or GPO
for current pricing and ordering information.
Documentation
contents
The necessary documentation is available electronically on CD-ROM,
including content and technical information that is needed to access the
data. Control total tables are also included.
Related
reports
Reports that relate to the data are available in Vital and Health
Statistics, Series
20, and Supplements to the Monthly
Vital Statistics Report.
Contact
Reproductive Statistics Branch
Division of Vital Statistics
National Center for Health Statistics
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
3311 Toledo Road, Room 7318
Hyattsville, Maryland 20782
(301) 458-4111