BIBLIOGRAPHIC INPUT SHEET TEMPORARY Patterns of mortality ...

128 Patternsof Mortalityin'Childhood
In 10 areas nutritional deficiency was one
of the causes in over 60 per cent of the
deaths:
Per cent
El Salvador, rural
Cartagena
Ribeirfio Pr~to, communities
Recife
Ribeirfio Pr~to (city)
St. Andrew, rural
San Salvador
Resistencia
Medellin
Cali
71.2
70.9
69.7
69.5
68.8
68.4
65.4
65.0
61.8
60.5
The relationship of nutritional deficiency
to mortality from all causes was not as close
in the 12 areas with lower death rates (Figure
62). Rates from this morbid condition
low in Santiago and the city of San
were
Juan. In San Francisco nutritional deftciency
was an associated cause in only three
deaths (as a consequence), while in the suburban
counties of California it was reported
in 20 deaths (as a consequence in 19). In
the Sherbrooke project it was a consequence
in six deaths.
The underlying and associated causes of
death for children 1 year and 2-4 years of
age are presented in greater detail in the
following sections, and the complete data
appear in the tables in Appendix 2.
MORTALITY IN THE SECOND YEAR OF LIFE
For the child who has reached the first
birthday, the second year of life is the most
hazardous one in early childhood. It is an
especially dangerous period for those who
have not attained a normal nutritional state
and are therefore more vulnerable to infectious
diseases. Of the 7,493 deaths in the
age group 1- years, more than half (4,361)
were of children in their second year of life,
that is, one that yer year ofage.crease s,
oe
The range in death rates for these children
(Table 67 and Figure 63) was the
greatest of all the age periods. The variations
were from 0.8 per 1,000 pol)ulation in
the suburban California counties to 50.7
in Viacha, Bolivia. In Latin America rural
and suburban areas had higher rates than
those in cities in the same projects, with one
exception (Ribeirrio Prto). In Argentina,
Bolivia, and El Salvador the rural rates
were much higher than in the cities. The
differences were less in Chile and Jamaica,
the rates being only slightly higher in the
comunas near Santiago and in rural St.
Andrew near Metropolitan Kingston. In the
California project the rates were nearly the
same for San Francisco and for the suburban
counties 10.94 and 0.79 per 1,000 p)opulation).
It would appear that differences between
rates for rural anl urban areas (eits
mortality becomies low.
creaseas tie ncmes ow.
In 10 areas the numbers of deaths were
small (less than 50) and thus for the analysis
by causes each of the projects is treated
as a whole (Table 68). The only exception
is El Salvador, where the number of deaths
in the rural inunicipios (217) was sufficient
for division by causes. Also the marked
differences found in El Salvador are indica­
tive of the wide variations in urban and
rural areas when death rates are high.