Background: Sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia contributed 81% of 5·9 million under-5 deaths and 77% of 2·6 million stillbirths worldwide in 2015. Vital registration and verbal autopsy data are mainstays for the estimation of leading causes of death, but both are non-specific and focus on a single underlying cause. We aimed to provide granular data on the contributory causes of death in stillborn fetuses and in deceased neonates and children younger than 5 years, to inform child mortality prevention efforts.

Author List: Taylor AW, Blau DM, Bassat Q, Onyango D, Kotloff KL, Arifeen SE, Mandomando I, Chawana R, Baillie VL, Akelo V, Tapia MD, Salzberg NT, Keita AM, Morris T, Nair S, Assefa N, Seale AC, Scott JAG, Kaiser R, Jambai A, Barr BAT, Gurley ES, Ordi J, Zaki SR, Sow SO, Islam F, Rahman A, Dowell SF, Koplan JP, Raghunathan PL, Madhi SA, Breiman RF; CHAMPS Consortium.

Journal Name: Lancet Glob Health. 2020 Jul;8(7):e909-e919. doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(20)30205-9. PMID: 32562647; PMCID: PMC7303945.