Infant mortality in Santiago de Cuba province during the period 2008-2022

Introduction: The infant mortality rate is an important and sensitive indicator of the well-being and life quality of a population, very used to measure the health state. Objective: To characterize the infant mortality in Santiago de Cuba province during the period 2008-2022. Methods: An observational descriptive and cross-sectional study about the infant mortality was carried out in Santiago de Cuba during the years 2008-2022. The existent relationship among the semesters of every year regarding births, deaths and their incidence in the country rate was analyzed. Results: A decrease of births and an increment of deaths were observed in each five year period studied regarding the previous one. The number of deceased children under one year fluctuated, with a tendency to the increase starting from 2019; also, the indicators of infant mortality were unstable, with tendency to the increment, mainly in the second semester, and worse results in 2021 and 2022. There was a maintained decrease of births since 2011 that reached 25.6% in 2022. In relation to semesters, in the second one there was a higher number of births, deaths and rates. Conclusions: Santiago de Cuba province influences in a direct way on the results of national infant mortality, with a superior rate to the one exhibited by the country. The second semester is the period in which births and deaths are increased, what impacts in the elevation of the respective rates.