Official Site of The State of New Jersey
Perinatal Mortality by Year, New Jersey and the United States, 2000 to 2021
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Why Is This Important?
The perinatal death rate is a critical measure of a population's health. Fetal and neonatal mortality, the components of perinatal mortality, are important indicators of fetal, infant, and maternal health status and medical care (pre- and post-delivery).
Definition
Rate of fetal deaths at 28 or more weeks of gestation plus infant deaths less than 7 days of age in a given year, per 1,000 live births plus fetal deaths of 28 or more weeks gestation in the same year. [NCHS Definition I]
Fetal death, which is also referred to as stillbirth, is defined as death prior to the complete expulsion or extraction of the fetus from its mother, where the fetus shows no signs of life. Additionally, only spontaneous fetal deaths, not induced or intentional terminations of pregnancy, are included in this definition.
This indicator uses NCHS Definition I of perinatal mortality. Please note the age for neonatal deaths and the gestational age for fetal deaths when making comparisons to other data sources as Definition II is more inclusive and therefore produces higher rates than Definition I.
Data Sources
- Fetal Death Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, New Jersey Department of Health; Linked Infant Death-Birth Database, Center for Health Statistics, New Jersey Department of Health
(https://www.nj.gov/health/vital/; https://www.nj.gov/health/chs/) - National Vital Statistics Reports, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/nvsr.htm) - Birth Certificate Database and Fetal Death Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, NJDOH
(https://www.nj.gov/health/vital/)
How the Measure is Calculated
Numerator:
Number of resident fetal deaths at 28 or more weeks of gestation plus resident infant deaths less than 7 days old in a given yearDenominator:
Number of live births plus fetal deaths of 28 or more weeks gestation to resident mothers in the same year
Data Issues
Only fetal deaths from the latter half of pregnancy (20 or more weeks gestation) are required to be reported to the NJDOH. Fetal deaths early in pregnancy can occur before a mother even knows she's pregnant, therefore a full count is impossible and each states' reporting requirements are based on a minimum gestational age and/or minimum weight.1Related Health Objectives and Indicators
Environmental Public Health Tracking Indicator RBO-15
Description: Infant, neonatal, postneonatal, and perinatal mortality rateshttps://ephtracking.cdc.gov/indicatorPages?selectedContentAreaAbbreviation=8&selectedIndicatorId=15