Social differentials in the decline of child mortality in nineteenth century Stockholm

Background: Mortality had declined dramatically by the end of the nineteent h century and the early twentieth century, Little is known about the develo pment of social differentials in infant and child mortality in Stockholm at the turn of the century. This study investigates social differentials in c hild mortality during the years 1885, 1891 and 1910 in one parish in Stockh olm. Methods: Individual entries from computerised records originally colle cted for civil registration purposes in Stockholm for 1878-1925 (the Rotema n Archives) were analysed with respect to social class of the head of house hold and marital status of the mother for 36,718 children aged 0-14 years. Age- and cause-specific mortality rates were calculated for each year of st udy. Cox' regression analysis was used to analyse the mortality risk (relat ive rates (RRs) of mortality) by socioeconomic group and by marital status of the mother. Results: Child mortality rates were nearly halved between 18 85 and 1910, Socioeconomic differentials in mortality between the four soci al classes emerged from 1891 as the overall mortality declined. The decline was sharpest in the upper and middle social classes. Children born out of wedlock had higher mortality rates than children of married mothers in all 3 years studied. Conclusion: The social differentials in child mortality ri sk were substantial and the gradient emerged sharper from 1891 to 1910, The results are in line with studies from England and Wales, Germany and the U SA for the same time period. The differentials mostly increased because of a greater decline in mortality among higher socioeconomic groups.