Afghanistan Mortality Survey 2010 - Measure DHS

Table 8.4 Causes of deaths among children under fivePercent distribution of neonatal, postneonatal, child, and under five deaths in the three yearsbefore the survey by underlying cause of death, Afghanistan 2010Underlying cause of deathNeonatal(< 1 month)Postneonatal(1-11months)Child(12-59months)Under fiveTetanus 4.0 0.2 0.1 1.6Congenital abnormality 2.9 3.4 4.0 3.3Injury 2.6 6.3 22.1 8.7Birth asphyxia 3.1 0.2 0.4 1.3Birth injury 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.1Measles 0.1 3.2 3.3 2.1Diarrhea 0.9 9.7 9.3 6.2Acute respiratory infection 11.5 35.4 23.4 23.4Other serious infections 26.4 14.7 16.9 19.7Pre-term/low birthweight 11.8 2.8 0.0 5.6Malnutrition 0.1 9.7 5.9 5.1Other conditions 1.0 9.2 11.6 6.6Perinatal-related disorders 34.8 3.2 1.4 14.8Other/unidentified causes 0.6 1.8 1.7 1.3Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0Number of deaths 507 505 316 1,328Note: Data are derived from the verbal autopsy questionnaires.8.6 CONCLUSIONAn important contribution of the AMS 2010 is information on cause of death, data previously notavailable on a national scale in Afghanistan. About 35 percent of all deaths in Afghanistan are due to noncommunicablediseases like cardiovascular diseases and cancers, while about three in ten are due tocommunicable diseases and infections. Injuries—especially war and violence—account for a much higherproportion of deaths to men (21 percent) than to women (7 percent). Hemorrhage accounts for over halfof maternal deaths. The leading causes of deaths to children under five are acute respiratory infectionsand other serious infections, each of which accounts for about one in five deaths in this age group.140 | Cause of Death