Infants in Juba, southern Sudan: the first twelve months of life.

A prospective survey of child health in Juba has been continued till the infants were 12 months old. They were visited monthly or more often if unwell. During the second 6 months of life 6 died; these deaths added to the 9 which occurred in the first 6 months produced an infant mortality rate of 11.8%. Diarrhoea was the whole or a partial cause of 11 of the 15 deaths in the first year. Growth in length by 12 months was satisfactory but the mean weight of the study infants was then at the third centile for healthy girls. Head circumference at 12 months was below normal and poor development was associated with the smaller head circumferences. Supplementary feeding had been started for all babies by the 12th month but only 4 of 127 had been weaned. 30 documented attacks of diarrhoea took place before supplementary feeding was started, suggesting that water given to infants is often contaminated.