Insights on the differentiation of stillbirths and early neonatal deaths: A study from the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) network.

Introduction: The high burden of stillbirths and neonatal deaths is driving global initiatives to improve birth outcomes. Discerning stillbirths from neonatal deaths can be difficult in some settings, yet this distinction is critical for understanding causes of perinatal deaths and improving resuscitation practices for live born babies.

Methods: We evaluated data from the Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS) network to compare the accuracy of determining stillbirths versus neonatal deaths from different data sources and to evaluate evidence of resuscitation at delivery in accordance with World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.

Initial findings from a novel population-based child mortality surveillance approach: a descriptive study.

Background: Sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia contributed 81% of 5·9 million under-5 deaths and 77% of 2·6 million stillbirths worldwide in 2015. Vital registration and verbal autopsy data are mainstays for the estimation of leading causes of death, but both are non-specific and focus on a single underlying cause. We aimed to provide granular data on the contributory causes of death in stillborn fetuses and in deceased neonates and children younger than 5 years, to inform child mortality prevention efforts.

Mortality Surveillance Methods to Identify and Characterize Deaths in Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance Network Sites.

Despite reductions over the past 2 decades, childhood mortality remains high in low- and middle-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. In these settings, children often die at home, without contact with the health system, and are neither accounted for, nor attributed with a cause of death. In addition, when cause of death determinations occur, they often use nonspecific methods.