Mortality Trends of Congenital Anomalies among Infants in Gaza

Infant mortality is important measure of health status because it both indicates the current health status of population and predicates the health of the next generation. Congenital anomalies are the leading cause of infant mortality in developing and developed countries. The etiology of congenital anomalies is not fully understood. The prevalence of congenital anomalies varies from one country to another and even in the same country from one region to another across the time. The aim of this book is to identify the mortality trends of congenital anomalies among infants in Gaza strip from 2001-2010 by census review for all available infant death notification certificates in the last ten years to describe the mortality trends of congenital anomalies among infants. The average trend of infant mortality rate during ten years was 20.03/1,000 live births. The incidence of infant deaths among males is higher than females (54.3% vs. 45.7%). The first leading cause of death among infants was prematurity with a percentage 27.3% while the second leading cause was congenital anomalies with a percentage 26.6%.