TY - JOUR
T1 - Acute lower respiratory infections
T2 - a major cause of death in children in Bangladesh
AU - Spika, J. S.
AU - Munshi, M. H.
AU - Wojtyniak, B.
AU - Sack, D. A.
AU - Hossain, A.
AU - Rahman, M.
AU - Saha, S. K.
PY - 1989
Y1 - 1989
N2 - The importance of acute lower respiratory infections (ALRI) as a cause of death in children was estimated using systematically collected demographic data on the population of the Teknaf area of southern Bangladesh. Of 1349 children aged 1-59 months who died between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1985, ALRI was diagnosed by verbal autopsy in 390 (29%) and was the leading cause of death. ALRI mortality rates were highest in the youngest age groups (136/1000 for those ≤5 months) and decreased in older children (16/1000 for those 3-4 years old). Half of all fatal ALRI cases occurred in children <6 months old. In older children, ALRI-associated deaths tended to occur during the months October to January, while deaths in infants tended to follow the seasonal birth pattern. Significant predisposing factors for fatal ALRI were malnutrition and measles, detected, respectively, in 18% and 8% of children who died from ALRI. This study emphasizes the importance of ALRI as a major cause of death in developing countries and suggests that interventions to reduce childhood mortality are needed and should be targeted to specific age groups at risk.
AB - The importance of acute lower respiratory infections (ALRI) as a cause of death in children was estimated using systematically collected demographic data on the population of the Teknaf area of southern Bangladesh. Of 1349 children aged 1-59 months who died between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1985, ALRI was diagnosed by verbal autopsy in 390 (29%) and was the leading cause of death. ALRI mortality rates were highest in the youngest age groups (136/1000 for those ≤5 months) and decreased in older children (16/1000 for those 3-4 years old). Half of all fatal ALRI cases occurred in children <6 months old. In older children, ALRI-associated deaths tended to occur during the months October to January, while deaths in infants tended to follow the seasonal birth pattern. Significant predisposing factors for fatal ALRI were malnutrition and measles, detected, respectively, in 18% and 8% of children who died from ALRI. This study emphasizes the importance of ALRI as a major cause of death in developing countries and suggests that interventions to reduce childhood mortality are needed and should be targeted to specific age groups at risk.
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U2 - 10.1080/02724936.1989.11748592
DO - 10.1080/02724936.1989.11748592
M3 - Article
C2 - 2471441
AN - SCOPUS:0024516215
SN - 0272-4939
VL - 9
SP - 33
EP - 39
JO - Annals of tropical paediatrics
JF - Annals of tropical paediatrics
IS - 1
ER -