The number of infants who died in the Tristate before age 1 increased by 12 percent in 1998, reversing a four-year decline. Aside from the mortality statistics, The Cincinnati Enquirer's sixth annual Tristate Child Index shows the state of local children remains relatively unchanged, in spite of a healthy economy and 107 months of uninterrupted economic growth, the longest expansion in U.S. history.
Child poverty increases the risks of low educational attainment, abuse and neglect and poor health.
Infant mortality is one of 12 categories that the newspaper measures to determine the well-being of Tristate children. The Enquirer collects the most recent statistics available for each of the eight counties and compiles regional rates, then compares them to national numbers. Some charts use 1998 statistics. Others are for 1999. One reason the Tristate rate has historically been high is a high rate of teen pregnancy, health officials say.