Epidemiology of Infant Deaths in Predominant Tribal Areas of Two Districts of Gujarat: Results of Pregnancy and Mortality Surveillance Program

Objective To understand epidemiology of the neonatal and infant deaths in predominant areas of two tribal districts of Gujarat. Methods A secondary analysis of pregnancy and mortality surveillance data was done to understand the causes and determinants of infant deaths in predominant tribal areas of two districts of Gujarat, India from 2015 to 2018. All pregnancies, their outcomes, and infant deaths were prospectively registered. A verbal autopsy tool was used to understand the cause of death. Result A total of 25,130 live births were recorded; 20,994 (83.5%) deliveries occurred at the hospital. Total 1,309 infant deaths (IMR - 52.08/1,000 live births) and 879 neonatal deaths (NMR - 34.97/1,000 live births) occurred during the program duration. The odds of infant deaths was high among male child aOR - 1.5 (CI:1.3–1.7, p