Those 8m deaths are still far too many, of course, but it is surely cause for celebration that infantmortality appears to have fallen by over a third during the past two decades.
Sowards KA. (1999) What is the leading cause of infantmortality? A note on the interpretation of official statistics. American Journal of Public Health. 89(11): 1752-4.
Hypoxic ischemia remains an important cause of infantmortality and morbidity, with an incidence of between one and two per 1,000 live births in the United States.