Childhood Mortality Among 22,255 Consecutive Admissions in the University College Hospital, Ibadan.

Abstract

Summary: A review of 22,255 consecutive admis sions in the Department of Paediatrics, University College Hospital, Ibadan, during the five-year period (January 1969-December 1973) showed an overall mortality of 14 per cent. Fifty per cent of the deaths occurred in the first year of life, forty three per cent occurred in the next four years, and only seven per cent in children aged 6 to 14 years. Infections and malnutrition were the major causes of death in the first five years of life, but in the older age groups death was more frequently due to malignancies, anaemias and chronic renal disease. Deaths from malaria infections occurred mainly between the ages of 3 and 7 years. The study indicates that impro vement in health care delivery, with particular attention to nutrition, health education, personal hygiene, and immunization against communicable diseases, will improve the survival rate of children in our environment.