INFANTS

When an infant dies after being live born, both a birth and a death certificate must be filed, regardless of how briefly the infant lived.

MATERNAL CONDITIONS CAUSING INFANT DEATH. If the infant died as a result of maternal conditions that were present before delivery, specify on the death certificate which conditions were maternal.

BIRTH WEIGHT/GESTATIONAL LENGTH. Terms such as “prematurity”, “low birth weight” and other references to weight and gestational length do not adequately identify the underlying cause of death. If a more specific disease or condition is known, it should be reported. For example, was there a specific maternal or fetal disease or condition that caused the birth to occur prematurely, or caused the low birth weight? Or was there a specific complication or disease caused by the prematurity or low birth weight?

FETAL DEATH (STILLBIRTH). Fetal deaths and stillbirths are not reported on death certificates. Instead, a Certificate of Fetal Death (Stillbirth) is submitted. See also Decision Tree for Reporting Pregnancy Outcomes

Following is the definition of a fetal death or stillbirth: “Death prior to the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of human conception, with 20 weeks or more gestation and/or weighing 350 grams or more; the death is indicated by the fact that after such expulsion or extraction the fetus does not breathe or show any other evidence of life, such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord or definite movement of voluntary muscles. Heartbeats shall be distinguished from transient cardiac contractions; respirations shall be distinguished from fleeting respiratory efforts or gasps.”

Cause of death reporting instructions for stillbirths/fetal death certificates are similar to reporting cause of death on infant death certificates.

Do not report “stillbirth”, “fetal death”, “intrauterine death” or similar terms as the cause of fetal death/stillbirth. Such terms provide no information on the cause of death.