Deaths due to homicide are the second-highest cause of injury-related mortality in children aged one to 14, audit finds

Deaths due to homicide or filicide accounted for 17.8pc of all injury-related deaths during 2019 and 2021, compared with 6.6pc between 2007 and 2018.

The vast majority of these deaths ­occurred in the child’s own home and were committed by a family member or someone known to the child.

The National Paediatric Mortality Register (NPMR) report from the National Office of Clinical Audit (NOCA) includes data on 892 child deaths from all causes. The victims were all under 19 years of age and the deaths were registered between 2019 and 2021.

But the real number of child deaths is unknown and the NPMR calls for a centralised database for accurate analysis.

Professor Michael Barrett, chair of the NPMR, said: “Accurate data on child deaths in Ireland is a beacon of hope for families, a testament to the lives lost and a roadmap to a safer future.

“While many deaths may be preventable, understanding the complex landscape of child mortality, including trauma, congenital disorders and cancers, allows us to strive for better care and support for those who need it most.”

There is currently very little accurate data available on the circumstances and reasons for mortality in children, on how many children die in any one year, on where they die or from what causes.

The report found that the overall infant mortality rate from 2019-2021 was 3.1 in every 1,000 live births, which is close to the European Union (EU) average of 3.4 in every 1,000 live births.

Forty-six per cent of deaths occurred during the neonatal period, where an infant was aged less than 28 days.

The biggest decline in infant ­mortality was seen among infants in the post-neonatal age group aged 29 days to one year old. This is due largely to a reduction in the number of deaths from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Death rates for children aged one to 14 years and young people aged 15 to 18 years have declined by 50pc since 2007.

After infancy, the leading cause of childhood death is accident and ­injury, accounting for one in five deaths in ­children aged one to 14 years and one in two deaths in young people aged 15 to 18 years.

Twenty-four per cent of injury- related deaths in children aged one to 14 years were due to road traffic collisions.

The report noted that the Irish ­National Sudden Infant Death ­Register is one of the great success stories of childcare over the past 30 years.

“Epidemiologically determined SIDS risk factors such as infants sleeping prone, maternal cigarette smoking or excessive infant bedding formed the basis for infant care advice that has directly led to a reduction in the number of SIDS deaths in Ireland from 150 to 160 per year in the late eighties to less than 30 per year currently,” said the report.

The National SIDS register enabled deaths of children in Ireland to be ­accurately documented in the first year after birth.