AN investigation has been launched to establish the cause of an unexplained spike in stillbirths in one of Scotland's health boards.
It came as figures for the country as a whole revealed that rates of stillbirths, infant and neonatal mortality had hit record lows.
The statistics published by ISD Scotland showed there were 291 stillbirths in Scotland in 2010, equivalent to 4.9 per 1000 births. The figure is the lowest on record and also puts Scotland's stillbirth rate below that of England and Wales – 5.1/1000 in 2010 – for the first time in a generation.
However, questions have been raised about an unusually high rate of stillbirths in NHS Fife, where it spiked to 8.3/1000 in 2010 despite being more or less in line with the national average during previous years. The figure was equivalent to 35 stillbirths in the region.
The ISD report said: "An exploration of possible reasons for the increased stillbirth rate in NHS Fife has taken place involving staff from NHS Fife, ISD and Healthcare Improvement Scotland. No obvious explanation was found."
NHS Fife has since launched a pilot scheme to enable a more detailed analysis of the causes behind each stillbirth. Initial projections for 2011 appear to indicate that rates in Fife fell back below the national average.
The ISD report also revealed that Scottish neo-natal mortality – babies who die within 28 days of birth – fell to a record low of 2.6/1000 births in 2010. Infant mortality – deaths within the first year – was also at a record low of 3.7/1000 in Scotland.
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