Infectious disease hospitalizations among American Indian and Alaska native infants.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the burden and trends in hospitalizations associated with infectious diseases among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) infants.


METHODS
First-listed infectious disease hospitalizations and hospitalization rates among AI/AN infants and infants in the general US population from 1988-1999 were analyzed by using Indian Health Service/tribal hospital discharge data and the National Hospital Discharge Survey data, respectively.


RESULTS
Infectious disease hospitalizations accounted for 53% of all AI/AN infant hospitalizations and approximately 43% of all US infant hospitalizations during 1988-1999. The annual hospitalization rate for infectious diseases among AI/AN infants declined from 27,486 per 100,000 infants in 1988 to 14,178 per 100,000 infants in 1999. However, the rates for AI/AN infants within the Alaska, Southwest, and Northern Plains regions remained higher than that for the general US infant population at the end of the study period. Lower respiratory tract infection hospitalizations accounted for almost 75% of AI/AN infant infectious disease hospitalizations, and the lower respiratory tract infection hospitalization rate for AI/AN infants was twice that for US infants.


CONCLUSIONS
Although infectious disease hospitalization rates for AI/AN infants have declined, AI/AN infants continue to have a higher infectious disease burden than the general US infant population.
Holman
Robert C
RC
Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases (DVRD), National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), US Department of Health and Human Services, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, USA.
Curns
Aaron T
AT
Cheek
James E
JE
Singleton
Rosalyn J
RJ
Anderson
Larry J
LJ
Pinner
Robert W
RW
D000367:Age Factors; D000413:Alaska / Q000453:epidemiology; D002673:Child, Hospitalized / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D016208:Databases, Factual / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D004930:Inuit / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D016549:United States Indian Health Service / Q000706:statistics & numerical data