In 2024, Portugal recorded increases in deaths of fetuses over 22 weeks of gestation and in deaths of children born alive who died under one year old, according to a report from the Directorate-General for Health (DGS).
The fetal mortality rate – deaths of fetuses with a gestational age equal to or greater than 22 weeks – went from 3.9 deaths per 1,000 births, in 2022 and 2023, to 4.1 deaths per 1,000 births in 2024, corresponding, respectively, to 325 deaths in 2022, 340 deaths in 2023 and 346 deaths in 2024, according to the Fetal and Infant Mortality Report 2022-2024, released this Wednesday.
The DGS considers that, despite these being moderate variations, which result from an interaction of different determinants whose assessment is complex and must be considered in light of these multiple factors, the recent trend justifies close monitoring and contextualized analysis.
The report also points out that, in this three-year period, fetal and neonatal mortality rates were higher among mothers of foreign nationality, and highlights the importance of considering social determinants, access to care and vulnerability factors.
The infant mortality rate – deaths of children born alive who died under one year of age -, which had fallen from 2.7 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022 to 2.5 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2023, increased again in 2024 to 3.0 deaths per 1,000 live births, corresponding to 229. 218 and 257 infant deaths, respectively.
The DGS highlights that annual fluctuations in the infant mortality rate result from an interaction of different determinants, the assessment of which is complex and must be considered in light of these multiple factors.
The majority of these deaths were attributed to treatable causes, namely conditions related to the perinatal period, congenital anomalies of the circulatory system and pneumonia due to an unspecified organism.
Among the preventable causes, the report highlights infectious and respiratory diseases, congenital anomalies associated with neural tube defects and external causes.
The Secretariat considers that these data reinforce the need to strengthen primary prevention strategies, early diagnosis and improved care response.
It also highlights variations in fetal mortality and infant mortality rates determined by areas of residence covered by the different Local Health Units, which may reflect territorial heterogeneity in demographic, socioeconomic profiles and the organization of care, justifying complementary local analyzes and context-adjusted interventions.
In the three-year period 2022–2024, the infant mortality rate was 2.8 deaths per 1,000 live births, an indicator that the DGS highlights places Portugal with a better performance than the European Union, with an average of 3.3 deaths per 1,000 live births.
By the end of 2026, a retrospective study of deaths is expected to be completed, using the new methodological instruments that have been developed in the meantime, which will allow for a more in-depth characterization of the causes and associated circumstances.
The Secretariat also highlights that, from 2027, local commissions will begin to carry out a systematic and continuous analysis of each fetal, infant and up to 18-year-old death that occurs, consolidating a model of active surveillance, institutional learning and the formulation of recommendations aimed at prevention and improving the quality and safety of care, highlighted in the document.
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