OBJECTIVES: to ascertain the degree of completeness and consistency of data in the Mortality Information System (SIM) and the Live Births Information System (Sinasc) in Pernambuco and to analyze the quality of information on child mortality obtained using these systems. METHODS: the SIM and Sinasc databases were combined using the linkage technique and deterministic and probabilistic methods. The data base obtained was analyzed according to the type of relation, the child mortality component and the demographic scope of the municipality of residence. Analysis of the fields filled in in the registers considered variables common to both systems. RESULTS: deterministic linkage helped greatly to identify true pairs of neonatal deaths, while the probabilistic method allowed a large portion of the postneonatal records to be recovered, especially in smaller municipalities. It was also found that there was a significant improvement in the completeness of the information analyzed, with the Sinasc contributing more to improve the information contained in the SIM. CONCLUSION: linkage made it possible to reduce the percentage of empty fields for all variables under study to less than 1% in both systems, showing that this is an important tool for ascertaining and improving the quality of information on child mortality.
Infant mortality; Information systems; Vital statistics
