The validity of infant mortality data is essential in assessing health care quality and in the setting of preventive measures. This study explores different diagnostic procedures used to determine the cause of death across forensic settings and thus the issue of the reduced validity of data. All records from three forensic medical departments that conducted autopsies on children aged 12 months or younger (n = 204) who died during the years 2007-2016 in Moravia were included. Differences in diagnostic procedures were found to be statistically significant. Each department works with a different set of risk factors and places different emphasis on different types of examination. The most significant differences could be observed in sudden infant death syndrome and suffocation diagnosis frequency. The validity of statistical data on the causes of infant mortality is thus significantly reduced. Therefore, the possibilities of public health and social policy interventions toward preventing sudden and unexpected infant death are extraordinarily complicated by this lack of data validity.

Department of Christian Social Work Sts Cyril and Methodius Faculty of Theology Palacký University Olomouc 779 00 Olomouc Czech Republic

Department of Forensic Medicine and Medical Law Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Palacký University Olomouc 779 00 Olomouc Czech Republic

Department of Forensic Medicine Faculty of Medicine Masaryk University and St Anne's University Hospital Brno 602 00 Brno Czech Republic

Department of Mathematical Analysis and Applications of Mathematics Faculty of Science Palacký University Olomouc 779 00 Olomouc Czech Republic

Department of Public Health Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Palacký University Olomouc 779 00 Olomouc Czech Republic

Institute of Pathology Faculty of Medicine University of Ostrava and University Hospital in Ostrava 701 03 Ostrava Czech Republic

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