Probe launched as 21 newborn babies die in Scotland in one month...

A PROBE has been launched into a rise in the number of newborn babies who died in Scotland.

Officials raised the alarm after the number of deaths spiked in September, the Herald reports.

Official figures revealed 21 Scots babies died within 28 days of birth in September.

The rates usually vary on a monthly basis, but September saw a rate of 4.9 per 1,000 live births - levels which were last seen in the 1980s.

The shocking figure caused Scotland's neonatal mortality rate to pass the 'control limit' warning threshold for the first time in four years.

The control and warning limits were put in place to alert public health teams when neonatal deaths are occurring at unprecedentedly high or low levels and if there is a reason causing them.

Concerns were voiced about the impact of the pandemic on maternity care and wellbeing, although this is the first time there has been an abnormal spike since the pandemic fist began.

Public Health Scotland is working alongside the Scottish Government and the Scottish National Neonatal Network and Maternity and Children Quality Improvement Collaborative to investigate the abnormal rise in newborn deaths.

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The aim of the probe is to identify any factors in what caused the deaths.

Any of the findings will be incorporated into current prevention and improvement work.

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A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Every death is a tragedy, and our thoughts are with everyone who is grieving the loss of a loved one.

“In 2020, Scotland recorded its lowest number of neonatal deaths.

"As the number of infant deaths is fortunately low, monthly mortality rates tend to fluctuate.

"We are working with PHS, the Scottish National Neonatal Network and the Maternity and Children Quality Improvement Collaborative to understand any possible contributing factors to ensure we continue to improve the care of the smallest and sickest babies in Scotland.”

Monthly stats on neonatal deaths are only available from July 2017.

The highest peak since then was in March 2020, which saw a rate of 3.7 per 1000 live births.

Figures from the National Records of Scotland showed newborn deaths have been on the decline for decades.

The figures plummeted from an average rate of 4.7 per 1000 live births in 1986-1990 to 2.2 per 1000 live births in 2016-2020.

The most common causes of neonatal deaths globally have been listed as suffocation, infection and prematurity.

Although other factors such as parents smoking during the preganancy or access to services such as midwives and health visits have also been identified.

There is currently no information on the causes of death involving the 21 babies who died in September.

A spokesperson for Public Health Scotland said: "The latest monthly figures published on infant deaths that happened in September 2021 show that the number of deaths occurring among babies up to 4 weeks of age exceeded the upper expected limit.

"There are a number of existing processes through which the circumstance of each death is reviewed, so that any learning can contribute to future prevention.

"As the overall number of infant deaths occurring each month is fortunately small, mortality rates can fluctuate from month to month.

"Public Health Scotland is working with the Scottish National Neonatal Network the Maternity and Children Quality Improvement Collaborative and the Scottish Government to understand any possible contributing factors to the most recent infant mortality patterns, and to incorporate findings into ongoing prevention and improvement work."

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