Infant mortality--United States, 1991

The final infant (< 1 year of age) mortality rate for the United States for 1991-8.9 infant deaths per 1000 live births--was the lowest rate ever recorded and represented a decrease of 3% from the rate of 9.2 for 1990 (Figure 1). Based on provisional data, the trend of declining infant mortality continued through 1992 (rate: 8.5) (1). Infant mortality rates varied by race; race reflected differing distributions of several risk factors for infant death (e.g., low birthweight [LBW] [< 2500 g (5 lbs 9 oz) at birth]) and is useful for identifying groups at greatest risk for infant death. This report uses race-specific information from birth and death certificates compiled by CDC's National Center for Health Statistics' Viral Statistics System (2) to characterize infant mortality in 1991 and compares findings with those for 1990.