Investigating the underlying causes of mortality among less than one year old infants in pediatric hospital of Bandar Abbas, Iran

Introduction: Providing, maintaining and promoting health of infants as a vulnerable age group is essential in health-care services. The present research sought to investigate the underlying causes of mortality among infants who were below 1 year old in Bandar Abbas pediatric hospital in 2011. Methods: In this descriptive-analytic research the medical files of all deceased infants who maximally aged up to 11 months and died in Bandar Abbas pediatric hospital in 2011 comprised the research population. The data were gathered through a pre-designed checklist, phone call and face-to-face meetings (when required). The data were later analyzed via SPSS 16. Results: In the study period, 223 infants (65.2%), below one year of age, had died within their first month of life and 119 of them (34.85) had died within the next eleven months. The primary reason for the death of the first group was sepsis while for the second group was prematurity. Such variables as birth weight, delivery type, feeding type, birth type, birth age, pregnancy interval, child abnormalities and parents&rsquo; educational level were found to be significantly correlated with infant mortality (P<0.05). Conclusion: It appears that careful attention to low-birth weight infants, raising mothers&rsquo; and families&rsquo; medical awareness, promotion of family regulation programs as well as offering standard healthcare before and during pregnancy positively affect the reduction of mortality among very young infants.