| Changes in Neonatal and Perinatal Vital Statistics during Last 5 Decades in Republic of Korea: Compared with OECD Nations. |
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Ja Hyang Cho, Seo Kyung Choi, Sung Hoon Chung, Yong Sung Choi, Chong Woo Bae |
1Department of Pediatrics, Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. baecw@khnmc.or.kr
2Department of Neonatology, Asan Medical Center, Ulsan University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. |
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| Abstract |
PURPOSE
Of numerous health status indicators, those of neonate and peripartum encompass nation's maternal, birth, neonatal and infantile health level. The goal of this study was to investigate the changes during the past 50 years of neonatal and perinatal indicators in Korea.
METHODS
We analyzed the changes of population, number of live births per year, crude birth rate (CBR), total fertility rate (TFR), incidence of low birth weight infant (LBWI) and preterm infants, neonatal mortality rate (NMR), infant mortality rate (IMR), perinatal mortality rate (PMR), and maternal mortality ratio (MMR) of Korea, and especially compared those indicators of Korea with those of other OECD nations during the past 50 years.
RESULTS
Korea has accomplished a marked improvement in the above indicators during the past 50 years. The average index of OECD and Korean rank among 34 OECD nations in the above health indicators in 2010 are as follows: population 49,410,370 (36,285,235, 9th), CBR 9.4 (12.1, 4th), TFR 1.23 (1.75, 1st), LBWI incidence 5.0 (6.8, 6th), NMR 1.8 (2.9, 8th), IMR 3.2 (4.3, 10th), PMR 3.3 (6.0, 4th), MMR 15.7 (8.7, 29th).
CONCLUSION
Birth rate of Korea was very low among OECD nations with relatively low LBWI incidence. It is inspiring that NR, IMR, and PMR were lower than the average. However, MMR was very higher than the average of OECD. The present review provides the neonatal and perinatal health indicators in Korea and it might be helpful to improve clinical practice and outcome in the future. |
| Key Words:
Epidemiology; Mortality; Population; Crude birth rate; Total fertility rate |
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