Avaliação da qualidade da informação sobre a causa básica de óbitos infantis no Rio Grande do Sul (Brasil)

The validity of the official information on the causes of infant deaths was studied in the Brazilian cities of Porto Alegre and Pelotas in 1985. Using data collected for a population-based case-control study of infant mortality due to infectious diseases or malnutrition, a comparison was made between the causes of death reported on the death certificates and those obtained after a careful review of case-notes and a medical interview with the parents of the deceased infants. Official death certificates showed an excess of deaths attribute to bronchopneumonia (ICD 485X) and septicemia (ICD 038.9), and an underestimation of the number of deaths due to diarrheal diseases (ICD 009.1) and of sudden infant deaths (ICD 798.0). The overall rate of agreement between official and revised certificates, in terms of groups of causes of death, was only 27.9%. Lower respiratory infections, which were the leading infectious cause of infant deaths according to official statistics, were superseded by diarrheal diseases after this revision.A partir de dados coletados para um estudo de casos e controles sobre mortalidade infantil por doenças infecciosas e desnutrição realizado em Porto Alegre e Pelotas, RS (Brasil), comparou-se as causas de óbito constantes do atestado médico com as causas obtidas através de uma revisão detalhada, realizada pela equipe da investigação. Concluiu-se que as estatísticas oficiais não são fidedignas, tendo havido sobre-registro de broncopneumonias (CID 485X) e de septicemias (CID 038.9), e sub-registro de gastroenterites (CID 009.1) e de mortes súbitas (CID 798.0). A concordância entre os atestados refeitos e os oficiais, em termos de grupos de causas de óbito, foi de apenas 27.9%