Social bases of neonatal and postneonatal mortality: an ecological analysis of Alberta, Canada

Canada's steady downward trend in mortality in the twentieth century has not been matched by a similar decline in infant mortality. This paper examines, by reference to census divisions in Alberta, the degree to which neonatal and postneonatal mortality are related to environmental factors. Although evidence is mixed, some support is found for the hypothesis that neonatal, as well as postneonatal mortality, is a function of social environmental factors.