RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Cause-specific neonatal mortality: analysis of 3772 neonatal deaths in Nepal, Bangladesh, Malawi and India JF Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition JO Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health SP F439 OP F447 DO 10.1136/archdischild-2014-307636 VO 100 IS 5 A1 Fottrell, Edward A1 Osrin, David A1 Alcock, Glyn A1 Azad, Kishwar A1 Bapat, Ujwala A1 Beard, James A1 Bondo, Austin A1 Colbourn, Tim A1 Das, Sushmita A1 King, Carina A1 Manandhar, Dharma A1 Manandhar, Sunil A1 Morrison, Joanna A1 Mwansambo, Charles A1 Nair, Nirmala A1 Nambiar, Bejoy A1 Neuman, Melissa A1 Phiri, Tambosi A1 Saville, Naomi A1 Sen, Aman A1 Seward, Nadine A1 Shah Moore, Neena A1 Shrestha, Bhim Prasad A1 Singini, Bright A1 Tumbahangphe, Kirti Man A1 Costello, Anthony A1 Prost, Audrey YR 2015 UL http://fn.bmj.com/content/100/5/F439.abstract AB Objective Understanding the causes of death is key to tackling the burden of three million annual neonatal deaths. Resource-poor settings lack effective vital registration systems for births, deaths and causes of death. We set out to describe cause-specific neonatal mortality in rural areas of Malawi, Bangladesh, Nepal and rural and urban India using verbal autopsy (VA) data.Design We prospectively recorded births, neonatal deaths and stillbirths in seven population surveillance sites. VAs were carried out to ascertain cause of death. We applied descriptive epidemiological techniques and the InterVA method to characterise the burden, timing and causes of neonatal mortality at each site.Results Analysis included 3772 neonatal deaths and 3256 stillbirths. Between 63% and 82% of neonatal deaths occurred in the first week of life, and males were more likely to die than females. Prematurity, birth asphyxia and infections accounted for most neonatal deaths, but important subnational and regional differences were observed. More than one-third of deaths in urban India were attributed to asphyxia, making it the leading cause of death in this setting.Conclusions Population-based VA methods can fill information gaps on the burden and causes of neonatal mortality in resource-poor and data-poor settings. Local data should be used to inform and monitor the implementation of interventions to improve newborn health. High rates of home births demand a particular focus on community interventions to improve hygienic delivery and essential newborn care.