Most dangerous states to be riding in a car this holiday weekend

November 25, 2009

Are you driving to your Thanksgiving dinner this weekend? Beware that your risk while rolling down the highway may be higher or lower depending on the state in which you are traveling. When it comes to dying in a car accident, some states are more deadly than others, and the ones at the top may surprise you. See the chart, Car Occupant Fatalities by State, 2006, below:

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Posted by Megan Cox

Have late preterm births increased among mothers of all ages?

November 18, 2009

Late preterm birth rates have risen among mothers of all ages from 1990 to 2006, including teenage mothers (up 5 percent). Among mothers age 25 years and over, late preterm birth rates increased by more than 20 percent from 1990 to 2006. Younger (under age 20 years) and older (40 years and over) mothers are the most likely to have a late preterm baby.

For more trends in late preterm births in the United States, visit the NCHS Data Brief at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db24.pdf.

1 Comment | Births, Mothers, National Center for Health Statistics, Preterm Births, Vital Statistics System | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Megan Cox

Nearly 1 in 5 School-Aged Children Have Some Kind of Basic Functioning Difficulty

November 12, 2009

A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics shows that children with and without functioning difficulty differ greatly in their use of educational and health care services. This report presents estimates of basic actions difficulty, which includes difficulties related to sensory, motor, cognitive, and emotional or behavioral functioning, in U.S. children aged 5–17 years based on questions from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Here are some results:

  • Approximately 18% of children aged 5–17 had basic actions difficulty in one or more of the following domains of functioning: sensory, movement, cognitive, or emotional or behavioral.
  • The percentage of children with difficulty in specific domains varied: 3% had sensory difficulty, 2% movement difficulty, 9% cognitive difficulty, and 10% emotional or behavioral difficulty.
  • From 2001 through 2007, the percentage of children aged 5–17 with basic actions difficulty remained stable at about 18%.

In addition, income was influential. Poor children (3%) were more likely to have movement difficulty than children who were not poor (2%). See the chart below.

Prevalence of any basic actions difficulty among children aged 5–17 years, by poverty status: United States, average annual estimates for 2001–2007

For more information please visit http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr019.pdf.

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Posted by Megan Cox

Infant mortality – Where does the U.S. stand?

November 5, 2009

In 2005, the latest year that the international ranking is available for, the United States ranked 30th in the world in infant mortality, behind most European countries, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, and Israel.

The United States international ranking in infant mortality fell from 12th in the world in 1960, to 23rd in 1990 to 29th in 2004 and 30th in 2005. After decades of decline, the United States infant mortality rate did not decline significantly from 2000 to 2005.

Infant mortality rates, selected=

 

For more, visit http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db23.htm.

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Posted by Megan Cox