Yasmina Kattou 06h13, May 02, 2022
A study published in the scientific journal The Lancet reveals the worrying rise in infant mortality in France for the first time in 10 years.
If the causes have not yet been determined, avenues are being explored by researchers, including congenital malformations or birth weight.
But also the lack of manpower among caregivers.
An alert study on the worrying rise in infant mortality in France.
For the first time in 10 years, the infant mortality rate has increased, reveals an INSERM study published in the scientific journal The Lancet.
A "worrying trend", notes the team of researchers since the infant mortality rate is a key indicator for assessing the health of the population.
Between 2012 and 2019, out of 1,000 births, France went from 3.3 deaths to 3.5 deaths of infants under the age of one.
This may not seem like much, but compared to Sweden or Finland, France thus observes an “excess” of 1,200 deaths among children under 1 year old.
For the moment, the precise causes of this increase have not yet been determined, but avenues have been mentioned by the researchers.
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Due to a lack of data on newborn deaths in France, the causes of the increase in infant mortality remain uncertain.
Birth defects or birth weight, which could be indicators, are not specified on the death certificate.
But the health of the mother is one of the advanced factors.
"Pregnant women are on average older, may have more chronic problems," reports Jennifer Zeitlin, epidemiologist and co-author of the study.
"Infant mortality is higher among women who come from disadvantaged backgrounds, because of access and quality of care."
A shortage of caregivers
Another hypothesis adopted by the researchers: there would be too many maternities in France but not enough caregivers to ensure deliveries in optimal conditions, as Jean Christophe Rozé, co-author and neonatologist, regrets.
"By maintaining a very large number of maternity wards where the level of safety cannot be the same, for lack of sufficient medical personnel, and the team's habit of dealing with a rare accident, means that we do not have the same security in all maternity wards", he believes.
According to Jean Christophe Rozé, the authorities should favor the quality of care over the proximity of maternity hospitals.