Infant Mortality and Asians and Pacific Islanders

Among Asian/Pacific Islanders, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the fourth leading cause of infant mortality. The infant mortality rate for Asian/Pacific Islanders was 40% greater for mothers under 20 years old, as compared to mothers, ages 25-29 years old.

At a glance – Infant Mortality Rate:
Infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births, 2005

Asian/Pacific Islander

Non-Hispanic White

All Races

Asian/Pacific Islander/Non-Hispanic White

4.9

5.8

--

0.8

Source: CDC 2008. Infant Mortality Statistics from the 2005 Period Linked Birth/Infant Death Data Set. National Vital Statistics Reports 57(2). Table 6.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_02.pdf [PDF, 745KB]

At a glance – Leading Causes of Infant Mortality:

**Infant deaths and mortality rates for the top 4 leading cause of death for Asians/Pacific Islanders, 2005. (Rates per 100,000 live births)**
Cause of Death (By rank)	# Asian/Pacific Islander Deaths	Asian/Pacific Islander Death Rate	#Non- Hispanic White Deaths	Non- Hispanic White Death Rate	Asian/Pacific Islander/ Non-Hispanic White Ratio
(1) Congenital malformations	259	112.1	2,851	125.0	0.9
(2) Low-Birthweight	179	77.5	1,725	75.7	1.0
(3) Maternal complications	68	29.4	734	32.2	0.9
(4) Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)	55	23.8	1,264	55.4	0.4

Source: CDC 2008. Infant Mortality Statistics from the 2005 Period Linked Birth/Infant Death Data Set. National Vital Statistics Reports 57(2). Table 7.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_02.pdf [PDF, 745KB]

At a glance – Prenatal Care:

Prenatal care began during the 1st trimester, 2004

**(% of live births in which mother received prenatal care starting in the 1st trimester)**
Race of Mother	% Received Prenatal Care	Ratio vs. Non-Hispanic White
Non-Hispanic White	88.9	--
Total Asian/Pacific Islander	85.6	1.0

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 7
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

Prenatal care began during the 3rd trimester or mother received no prenatal care, 2004

**(% of live births in which mother received prenatal care starting in the 3rd trimester or did not receive prenatal care at all)**
Race of Mother	% Received Late or No Prenatal Care	Ratio vs. Non-Hispanic White
Non-Hispanic White	2.2	--
Total Asian/Pacific Islander	3.0	1.4

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 7
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

At a glance – Characteristics of Mother:

**Percentage of mothers who smoked cigarettes during pregnancy, 2004**
Race of Mother	% Mothers Who Smoked	Ratio vs. Non-Hispanic White
Non-Hispanic White	13.8	--
Total Asian/Pacific Islander	2.2	0.2

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 12
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

Maternal education, 2004

**% of live births in which mother had less than 12 years of education**
Race of Mother	% Live Births	Ratio vs. Non-Hispanic White
Non-Hispanic White	11.0	--
Total Asian/Pacific Islander	9.3	0.8

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 11
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

**% of live births in which mother had 16 years or more of education**
Race of Mother	% Live Births	Ratio vs. Non-Hispanic White
Non-Hispanic White	37.0	--
Total Asian/Pacific Islander	48.6	1.3

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 11
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

**Infant mortality rates among mothers 20 years of age and over, with less than 12 years education**
Asian American	Non-Hispanic White	Asian American/Non-Hispanic White Ratio
5.7	9.0	0.6

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 20
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

**Infant mortality rates among mothers 20 years of age and over, with over 13 years education**
Asian American	Non-Hispanic White	Asian American/Non-Hispanic White Ratio
3.8	4.1	0.9

Source: CDC 2007. Health United States, 2007. Table 20
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hus/hus07.pdf

Age of mother, 2005

**Infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births**
Age of mother	Asian/Pacific Islander	Non-Hispanic White	Asian/Pacific Islander/White Ratio
Under 20 years	10.9	10.0	1.1
20-24 years	6.5	7.1	0.9
25-29 years	3.9	5.1	0.8
30-34 years	4.9	4.4	1.1
35-39 years	4.5	5.1	0.9
40-54 years	6.0	6.6	0.9

Source: CDC 2008. Infant Mortality Statistics from the 2005 Period Linked Birth/Infant Death Data Set. National Vital Statistics Reports 57(2). Table 1 and Table 2.
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_02.pdf [PDF, 745KB]

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Content Last Modified: 9/16/2008 10:23:00 AM