Table 1 Summary of studies that reported day-specific mortality

Baqui et al.,⁷ India

Prospective

Data from two districts of Uttar Pradesh

Neonatal deaths: 618

Data collected by data collectors

Cause of death assigned by WHO VA algorithm

Day 0: 197 (31.8%)

Day 1: 48 (7.8%)

Day 2: 62 (10%)

Day 3: 46 (7.4%)

Day 4: 25 (4%)

Day 5: 28 (4.5%)

Day 6: 31 (5%)

Week 2: 92 (14.9%)

Weeks 3–4: 89 (14.4%)

Moderate

(prospective data collection)

ICMR Young Infant Study Group,²⁶ India

Cross-sectional survey from January to July 2003

Data from rural sites in five states of Uttar Pradesh

Neonatal deaths: 1521

VA

Day 0: 598 (39.3%)

Day 1: 111 (7.3%)

Day 2: 155 (10.2%)

Day 3: 94 (6.2%)

Day 4: 84 (5.5%)

Day 5: 43 (2.8%)

Day 6: 43 (2.8%)

Week 2: 192 (12.6%)

Weeks 3–4: 199 (13.1%)

Low

Chowdhury et al.,²² Bangladesh

Retrospective; 2003–2004

Data from HDSS

Neonatal deaths: 365

VA by interviewers

Three physicians assigned the cause of death

Agreement of at least two physicians required

Day 0: 136 (37.2%)

Day 1: 57 (15.6%)

Day 2: 56 (15.3%)

Day 3: 30 (8.2%)

Day 4: 8 (2.2%)

Day 5: 6 (1.6%)

Day 6: 6 (1.6%)

Week 2: 34 (9.3%)

Weeks 3–4: 32 (8.7%)

Low

Population-based data; no details on place of delivery

Welaga et al.,⁸ Ghana

Prospective, 2003–2009

Data from Navrongo Health Research Centre’s HDSS

Neonatal deaths: 424

Validated VA by trained field supervisors

Three physicians reviewed the VA forms and assigned cause of death 

Agreement of at least two physicians needed

Day 0: 119 (28%)

Day 1: 55 (13%)

Day 2: 21 (5%)

Day 3: 30 (7%)

Day 4: 17 (4%)

Day 5: 21 (5%)

Day 6: 17 (4%)

Week 2: 64 (15%)

Weeks 3–4: 85 (20%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Only proportion of day-wise neonatal deaths available from study (Figure 4). Actual numbers extrapolated from proportions

Nga et al.,⁹ Vietnam

Prospective; July 2008–June 2010

Data collected from 14 districts of Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam as part of the Knowledge into Practice for Improving Neonatal Survival (NeoKIP) project

Neonatal deaths for whom VA performed: 233

VA using questionnaire derived from WHO

Cause of death assigned by three experienced pediatricians reviewing forms independently

Day 0: 136 (57.1%)

Day 1: 15 (6.4)

Day 2: 14 (6%)

Day 3: 6 (2.6%)

Day 4: 4 (1.7%)

Day 5: 6 (2.6%)

Day 6: 7 (3.0%)

Week 2: 24 (10.3%)

Weeks 3–4: 21 (9.1%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Belizán et al.,¹⁰ multicenter

Prospective; October 2009–March 2011

Seven sites in six countries: Argentina, Guatemala, Kenya, India, Pakistan and Zambia

Neonatal deaths: 3882

Conducted by Global Network for Women and Children’s Health Research

Day 0: (2019) 52%

Day 1: (427) 11%

Day 2: (272) 7%

Day 3: (194) 5%

Day 4: (116) 3%

Day 5: (78) 2%

Day 6: (78) 2%

Week 2: (349) 9%

Week 3: (233) 6%

Week 4: (116) 3%

Data extrapolated from Figure 1 in the original study

Khatun et al.,¹¹ Bangladesh

Prospective; January 2008–December 2009

Urban slums in Bangladesh

Neonatal deaths: 260

VA—cause of death assigned by physicians

Day 0: (94) 36%

Day 1: (31) 12%

Day 2: (23) 9%

Day 3: (16) 6%

Day 4: (8) 3%

Day 5: (10) 4%

Day 6: (10) 4%

Week 2: (39) 15%

Week 3: (17) 6.5%

Week 4: (12) 4.5%

Data extrapolated from Figure 2 in the original study

Campbell et al.,²³ Egypt

Retrospective

Egypt DHS (January 1998–April 2000)

Neonatal deaths: 117

Three methods were compared: WHO VA

Revised Wigglesworth classification

Consensus by two neonatologists

Day 0: 35 (29.9%)

Day 1: 8 (6.8%)

Day 2: 16 (13.7%)

Day 3: 13 (11.1%)

Day 4: 6 (5.1%)

Day 5: 6 (5.1%)

Day 6: 5 (4.3%)

Weeks 2–4: 28 (23.9%)

Low

Bang et al.,¹² India

Prospective; 1995–1996

Rural India

Neonatal deaths: 40

Cause of death assigned by neonatologist based on maternal and neonatal records

Day 0–2: 14 (35%)

Days 3–6: 9 (22.5%)

Days 8–14: 11 (27.5%)

Days 15–28: 6 (15%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Edmond et al.,¹³ Ghana

Prospective; January 2003–June 2004

Central Ghana

Neonatal deaths: 590

VA

Day 0: 242 (41%)

Days 2–7: 195 (33.1%)

Days 8–28: 153 (25.9%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Waiswa et al.,¹⁴ Uganda

Prospective; January 2005–December 2008

Iganga/Mayuge districts

Neonatal deaths: 64

VA

Day 0: 30 (46.8%)

Day 1: 8 (12.5%)

Days 3–28: 26 (40.6%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Bapat et al.,¹⁵ India

Prospective; 2005–2007

48 slum settlements in Mumbai

Newborn deaths: 210 (but data only available for 116)

VA by trained field researchers

Cause of death classified by clinicians

Day 0: 40 (34.5%)

Day 1: 12 (10.3%)

Day 2: 11 (9.5%)

Days 3–6: 24 (20.7%)

Weeks 2–4: 29 (25%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Upadhyay et al.,²⁷ India

Cross-sectional study 2010

Data from 28 villages under Comprehensive Rural Health Services Project

Neonatal deaths: 50

Data collected by interviewing mothers of neonates who died during 2010 using a standardized VA tool

Cause of death assigned by three investigators who reviewed forms

Day 0: 22 (44%)

Days 1–6: 16 (32%)

Weeks 2–4: 12 (24%)

Low

Niswade et al.,¹⁶ India

Prospective; November 2006–October 2007

Data collected by Neonatal Disease Surveillance study in Ramtek Tehsil, Nagpur

Neonatal deaths: 36

Data collected by study research assistants visiting mothers on days 1, 7 and 28

Active and passive surveillance systems used

Day 0: 15 (41.7%)

Day 6: 11 (30.6%)

Day 28: 10 (27.8%)

Moderate (prospective data collection)

Rajindrajith et al.,²⁴ Sri Lanka

Retrospective

Data from registrar general’s office (1997–2001)

Neonatal deaths: 17 946

Cause of death assigned by physicians

Early neonatal death: 90.5%

Death on day 1: 32%

—

Gill et al.,¹⁷ Zambia

Prospective June 2006–November 2008

Data from Lufwanyama district

Neonatal deaths: 100

Control group: 58

Data collected by data collectors; helped by birth attendants

Cause of death assigned by WHO VA algorithm

Neonatal deaths in control group

Days 0–1: 40 (69%)

Days 2–27: 18 (31%)

—

Data from the control group of cluster RCT used