Rise in child deaths largely preventable, says UCI Health pediatrician

IN THE NEWS: Recently published research documents a sad reversal in a decades-long decline in child deaths in the United States.

A study published May 4 in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that such deaths are not only increasing, but also that Black and Native American youths ages 1 to 19 died at higher rates than their white counterparts. The deaths were mostly the result of car accidents, homicides, suicides and other injuries.

UCI Health pediatrician Dr. Coleen Cunningham spoke to The New York Times about the trend. She was not involved with the study.

“[The study documents] a sad and growing American tragedy. Almost all are preventable if we make it a priority.”

Cunningham is a nationally regarded expert in pediatric infectious diseases and is a physician at UCI Health Pediatric Services. She is the senior vice president and pediatrician-in-chief for Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) and the chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the UCI School of Medicine. Cunningham is leading the development of a nasal-drop RSV vaccine for children 6 to 24 months of age.

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