Infant mortality rates in the United States reveal significant disparities among racial and ethnic groups. In 2023, Black mothers faced the highest rate at nearly 11 deaths per 1,000 live births, more than double the rate for white mothers. This stark contrast persists despite overall improvements in healthcare and highlights the need for targeted interventions to address these inequalities. Birth rates and fertility trends While infant mortality rates vary, birth rates also differ across ethnicities. Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women had the highest fertility rate in 2022, with about 2,237.5 births per 1,000 women, far exceeding the national average of 1,656.5. In 2023, this group maintained the highest birth rate at 79 births per 1,000 women. Asian women, by contrast, had a much lower birth rate of around 50 per thousand women. These differences in fertility rates can impact overall population growth and demographic shifts within the United States. Hispanic birth trends and fertility decline The Hispanic population in the United States has experienced significant changes in birth trends over recent decades. In 2021, 885,916 babies were born to Hispanic mothers, with a birth rate of 14.1 per 1,000 of the Hispanic population. This represents a slight increase from the previous year. However, the fertility rate among Hispanic women has declined dramatically since 1990, dropping from 108 children per 1,000 women aged 15-44 to 63.4 in 2021. This decline aligns with broader trends of decreasing fertility rates in more industrialized nations.

Infant Mortality Rate by Maternal Race/Ethnicity for New York City, 2007-2016 Counts of infant deaths (age <1 year) are based on NYC death certificates. The rate is calculated using the counts of infant deaths as the numerator and the count of live births from NYC birth certificates as the denominator.

This is a source dataset for a Let's Get Healthy California indicator at https://letsgethealthy.ca.gov/. Infant Mortality is defined as the number of deaths in infants under one year of age per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality is often used as an indicator to measure the health and well-being of a community, because factors affecting the health of entire populations can also impact the mortality rate of infants. Although California’s infant mortality rate is better than the national average, there are significant disparities, with African American babies dying at more than twice the rate of other groups. Data are from the Birth Cohort Files. The infant mortality indicator computed from the birth cohort file comprises birth certificate information on all births that occur in a calendar year (denominator) plus death certificate information linked to the birth certificate for those infants who were born in that year but subsequently died within 12 months of birth (numerator). Studies of infant mortality that are based on information from death certificates alone have been found to underestimate infant death rates for infants of all race/ethnic groups and especially for certain race/ethnic groups, due to problems such as confusion about event registration requirements, incomplete data, and transfers of newborns from one facility to another for medical care. Note there is a separate data table "Infant Mortality by Race/Ethnicity" which is based on death records only, which is more timely but less accurate than the Birth Cohort File. Single year shown to provide state-level data and county totals for the most recent year. Numerator: Infants deaths (under age 1 year). Denominator: Live births occurring to California state residents. Multiple years aggregated to allow for stratification at the county level. For this indicator, race/ethnicity is based on the birth certificate information, which records the race/ethnicity of the mother. The mother can “decline to state”; this is considered to be a valid response. These responses are not displayed on the indicator visualization.

In both 2021 and 2022, the children of Black mothers in the United States had the highest infant mortality rate, at almost 11 deaths per 1,000 live births. This statistic shows the infant mortality rate in the United States in 2021 and 2022 by the race and ethnicity of the mother.

All birth data by race before 1980 are based on race of the child; starting in 1980, birth data by race are based on race of the mother. Birth data are used to calculate infant mortality rate.

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data-visualization/mortality-trends/

In 2022, the state of Mississippi had the highest infant mortality rate in the United States, with around 9.11 deaths per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality is the death of an infant before the age of one. The countries with the lowest infant mortality rates worldwide are Slovenia, Singapore, and Iceland. The countries with the highest infant mortality rates include Afghanistan, Somalia, and the Central African Republic. Causes of infant mortality Rates and causes of infant mortality are different depending on the country and region. However, the leading causes of neonatal deaths include preterm birth complications, intrapartum-related events, and sepsis. The leading causes of death among children aged 1 to 59 months are pneumonia, diarrhea, and injury. In the United States The infant mortality rate in the United States has decreased over the past few decades, reaching a low of 5.4 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2021. The most common causes of infant death in the United States are congenital malformations, low birth weight, and sudden infant death syndrome. In 2022, congenital malformations accounted for around 108 infant deaths per 100,000 live births.

From 2019 to 2021, there were over ** infant deaths per 1,000 live births among non-Hispanic Black women who were obese before pregnancy in the United States. This statistic illustrates the rate of infant mortality in the United States from 2019 to 2021, by maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index and race/ethnicity.

Non-Hispanic Black women had the highest rate of infant mortality in the U.S. in 2022. In that year, there were almost 11 infant deaths per 1,000 live births among Black women. Leading causes of infant mortality in the U.S. include congenital malformations, disorders related to short gestation and low birth weight, maternal complications, and sudden infant death syndrome.

This topic is no longer available in the NCHS Data Query System (DQS). Search, visualize, and download other estimates from over 120 health topics with DQS, available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/dataquery/index.htm. Data on on average annual infant mortality rates in the United States and U.S. dependent areas, by race and Hispanic origin of mother, state, and territory. Data are from Health, United States. SOURCE: National Center for Health Statistics, National Vital Statistics System, Linked Birth/Infant Death Data Set.

🇺🇸 미국 English Infant Mortality Rate by Maternal Race/Ethnicity for New York City, 2007-2016 Counts of infant deaths (age

Non-Hispanic Black women had the highest rate of infant mortality in the U.S. in 2023. In that year, there were almost 11 infant deaths per 1,000 live births among Black women. Leading causes of infant mortality in the U.S. include congenital malformations, disorders related to short gestation and low birth weight, maternal complications, and sudden infant death syndrome.

In 2022, there were around 10 fetal deaths per 1,000 births among non-Hispanic Black women in the United States. This statistic illustrates the fetal mortality rates in the United States in 2021 and 2022, by race and ethnicity.

Fetal mortality occurs after 20 weeks of gestation and before labor. Infant mortality occurs before the first year of age and is a sum of Neonatal (the first 28 days after birth) and Postneonatal (from 28 days up to 1 year) mortality. Rates are calculated per every 1000 births; rates are not available for disaggregated race/ethnicities. Fetal and infant mortality values are available for given race/ethnicities. Connecticut Department of Public Health collects and reports data annually. CTData.org carries 1-, 3- and 5-Year aggregations.

From 2019 to 2021, there were around 19 infant deaths per 1,000 live births among non-Hispanic Black women in the United States who smoked during pregnancy. In comparison, the infant mortality rate among Black women who did not smoke while pregnant was 5.16 per 1,000 live births. This statistic depicts the rate of infant mortality in the United States from 2019 to 2021 among women who smoked or not during pregnancy, by race/ethnicity.

In 2022, around 25 percent of fetal deaths among non-Hispanic white women in the United States were due to placental, cord, and membrane complications. This statistic illustrates the distribution of fetal deaths in the United States in 2022, by race/ethnicity and selected causes.

From 2019 to 2021, overall infant mortality rates in the U.S. were highest among infants of women who received late or no prenatal care and lowest among infants of women who received it in the first trimester. This statistic depicts the infant mortality rate in the United States from 2019 to 2021, by initiation of prenatal care and maternal race/ethnicity.

For current version see: https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/hhsa/programs/phs/maternal_child_family_health_services/MCFHSstatistics.html

Infant Mortality - Cohort Dataset Note: The Infant Mortality Rate is infant deaths (under one year of age) per 1,000 live births, by geography. Numerator represents infant's race/ethnicity. Denominator represents mother's race/ethnicity.

***API: Asian/Pacific Islander. ***AIAN: American Indian/Alaska Native. Blank Cells: Rates not calculated for fewer than 5 events. Rates not calculated in cases where infant's zip code of residence is unknown.

Sources: State of California, Department of Public Health, Death Statistical Master Files (before 2014), California Comprehensive Death Files (2014 and later), and Birth Statistical Master Files. Prepared by: County of San Diego, Health & Human Services Agency, Public Health Services, Community Health Statistics Unit, 2019.

Interpretation: "There were 5 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in Geography X".

Data Guide, Dictionary, and Codebook: https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/dam/sdc/hhsa/programs/phs/CHS/Community%20Profiles/Public%20Health%20Services%20Codebook_Data%20Guide_Metadata_10.2.19.xlsx

Fetal mortality occurs after 20 weeks of gestation and before labor. Infant mortality occurs before the first year of age and is a sum of Neonatal (the first 28 days after birth) and Postneonatal (from 28 days up to 1 year) mortality. Rates are calculated per every 1000 births; rates are not available for disaggregated race/ethnicities. Fetal and infant mortality values are available for given race/ethnicities. Connecticut Department of Public Health collects and reports data annually. CTData.org carries 1-, 3- and 5-Year aggregations.

Despite recent decreases in Black infant mortality, racial disparities persist, motivating continued research into factors related to these inequalities. While the inverse association between education and infant mortality has been documented across races, less is known about its geographic heterogeneity. Using vital statistics from the National Center for Health Statistics, this study considers Black-white disparities in infant mortality for births occurring between 2011 and 2015 across regions and metropolitan status of maternal residence. With logistic regressions, we investigate heterogeneity in maternal educational gradients of infant mortality by geographic residence both within and between races. Beyond confirming the well-known relationship between education and infant mortality, our findings document a slight metropolitan advantage for infants born to white mothers as well as lower returns to education for infants born to Black mothers residing in nonmetropolitan counties. We observe a metropolitan advantage for infants born to Black mothers with at least a bachelor's degree, but a metropolitan disadvantage for infants born to Black mothers with less than a high school degree. The South is driving this divergence, pointing to particular mechanisms limiting returns to education for Southern Black mothers in nonmetropolitan areas. This paper's geographic perspective emphasizes that racial infant health disparities are not uniform across the country and cannot be fully understood through individual and household characteristics.

From 2016 to 2020, the rate of sudden infant death syndrome among Hispanics in the United States was 21.2 per 100,000 live births. This statistic shows the rates of sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) in the U.S. from 2016 to 2020, by cause and race and ethnicity.