The purpose of the Fetal and Infant Deaths publication series is to inform discussion and assist in future policy development. Readership of this publication is wide-ranging and the contents reflect this, aiming to meet the needs of all interested parties.
The Fetal and Infant Deaths publication series presents data on deaths that occur before one completed year of life. This edition presents information on the underlying causes of these deaths registered in New Zealand for the 2006 calendar year.
Purpose
The purpose of the fetal and infant deaths publication series is to inform discussion and assist in future policy development. Readership of this publication is wide-ranging and the contents reflect this, aiming to meet the needs of all interested parties.
The fetal and infant deaths publication series presents data on deaths that occur before one completed year of life. This edition presents information on the underlying causes of these deaths registered in New Zealand for the calendar year 2006.
Key Results
Fetal and Infant Deaths 2006: Key Facts
Deaths
- There were a total of 717 fetal and infant deaths registered in 2006.
- In 2006, 308 infant deaths were registered (5.1 deaths per 1000 live births). There were 409 fetal deaths in 2006 (6.7 deaths per 1000 total births).
- The infant death rate for the total population has declined from 7.3 deaths per 1000 live births in 1996, to 5.1 deaths per 1000 live births by 2006.
- In 2006, 32.5 percent of infant deaths were where the baby died within 24 hours of life.
Ethnicity
- Māori infant deaths (130 deaths) accounted for 42.2 percent of all infant deaths.
- Overall, the Māori infant death rate has been decreasing since 1996; declining from 11.6 deaths per 1000 live births in 1996, to 7.2 deaths per 1000 live births in 2006.
- The Māori infant death rate was 90.1 percent higher than the non-Māori, non-Pacific ethnic group in 2006.
- The Pacific infant death rate was 67.8 percent higher than the non-Māori, non-Pacific ethnic group in 2006.
Risk factors
- Babies born in multiple births accounted for 8.0 percent of early neonatal deaths in 2006.
- The most deprived areas in New Zealand (NZDep2001 Quintile 5) have high, but decreasing, rates of perinatal deaths compared with other quintiles.
- The most deprived areas in New Zealand have rates of infant deaths over two times the least deprived areas (NZDep2001 Quintile 1).
- Babies with a birthweight of less than 1000g and a gestation of less than 32 completed weeks made up 46.7 percent of all neonatal deaths and 7.0 percent of post-neonatal deaths.
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
- Fifty infant deaths were attributed to the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in 2006.
- The SIDS rate of 0.8 deaths per 1000 live births in 2006 was similar to the 2005 SIDS figure of 0.7 deaths per 1000 live births.
- SIDS was the underlying cause of death for 15.9 percent of all infant deaths and 31.5 percent of post-neonatal deaths.