Better tracking of what kills children under five in low-income countries
Official title: Improving Age- and Cause-Specific Under-Five Mortality Rates (ACSU5MR) by Systematically Accounting Measurement Errors to Inform Child Survival Decision Making in Low Income Countries
Funded at Johns Hopkins University · NIH-11496469 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project improves how we measure what causes deaths at different ages under five to help children and health programs in low-income countries.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Johns Hopkins University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project start | May 11, 2023 |
| Project end | February 29, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $82,983 |
| NIH project number | 3R01HD107015-04S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11496469 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children under five and their communities in low-income countries—especially those included in national surveys or verbal autopsy efforts—are the primary focus for data and potential local impact.
✕Less likely to help
Families in high-income settings or regions not represented in the analyzed data may not see direct benefits from this work.
What this research studies
If your child lives in a low-income country, this project aims to give clearer information about which illnesses or injuries cause deaths at different ages from birth to five years. Researchers will combine and re-analyze existing sources like surveys, death records, and verbal autopsies and use statistical methods to correct common measurement errors. The team will produce age- and cause-specific death estimates with more precision so health workers can match interventions to the ages and causes that matter most. Those results are meant to guide governments and aid groups on where to focus vaccines, treatments, and other programs.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, it could help target vaccines, treatments, and health programs more precisely to reduce child deaths.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work has produced broad under-five mortality estimates, but age-specific, cause-specific estimates that formally correct for measurement errors are relatively new and less tested.
Where this research is happening
-
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Liu, Li — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Liu, Li
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.