Study finds Black infants with heart abnormalities more likely to die within first year

Image credit: © Anatta_Tan - stock.adobe.com

A new study presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2024 National Conference & Exhibition has uncovered disparities in infant mortality rates from congenital heart disease (CHD), with Black infants facing a significantly higher risk of death compared to white infants.

The study, titled “Trend in Racial Differences in Mortality Attributed to Congenital Heart Diseases in Infants in the United States from 2005 to 2019,” used data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to examine deaths among infants with CHD. Researchers reviewed data from 60,243,988 live births, of which 19,004 resulted in deaths due to congenital heart disease.

From 2005 to 2019, the overall infant mortality rate (IMR) for congenital heart disease dropped by 25.2%, from 36.1 deaths per 100,000 live births to 27.0 deaths. However, despite this, the study found that the disparity between Black and white infants remained unchanged. Black infants consistently faced higher mortality rates due to CHD throughout both the neonatal period (birth to 28 days) and post-neonatal period (28 days to 1 year).

Researchers used joinpoint regression analysis to examine trends in the CHD-related infant mortality rate by race. The mortality rate for white infants decreased significantly, with an average annual percentage change (AAPC) of -2% (95% CI: -2.5, -1.5%). However, the decline for Black infants was not statistically significant, with an AAPC of -1.4% (95% CI: -3.0, 0.3%).

The study found that, on average, Black infants died at a rate 1.4 times higher than white infants. This ratio remained constant over the 15-year study period, showing no significant change in the racial disparity (AAPC: 0.8%, 95% CI: -0.2, 1.8%).

“The death rate in white infants decreased significantly but the rate in Black infants did not. Overall, we also found that Black infants died from these abnormal heart structures at a rate that was 1.4 times that of white infants,” said Kwadwo Danso, MBChB, lead author of the study.

This study highlights significant racial disparities in infant mortality rates and raises important questions about the root causes of these differences. Danso emphasized that further research is urgently needed to understand why Black infants are more likely to die from congenital heart disease than white infants.

“Our findings may have implications for patient care and public health policy by serving as a foundation for additional studies to determine the drivers behind these disparities,” said Danso. “More research is needed on this disparity to understand why Black infants with congenital heart disease are more likely to die.”

Although the study does not specifically address the causes of this disparity, prior research suggests that factors such as health care access, socioeconomic status, and differences in care quality could be contributing to the higher mortality rates among Black infants. The findings call for immediate attention from both healt hcare providers and policymakers to address the racial gap in CHD-related infant deaths.

Reference:

Black infants with heart abnormalities more likely to die in first year. Eurekalert. September 27, 2024. Accessed September 28, 2024. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1058480