Resumen:
We study the effects of several variables on the prereproductive mortality pattern in the isolated and rural population of La Alpujarra, located on the western Mediterranean coast (southeast Spain), in the first half of the 20th century. The study is a retrospective analysis from a total sample of 2,200 deliveries, 2,085 of which were born alive and 171 of which did not survive to the 20th birthday. The potential influences of birthdate of children, twinning, firstborn, parental inbreeding, and sex on Alpujarran mortality were analyzed through logistic regression. Parity, family size, and birth interval effects were estimated through the difference between observed and expected mortality rates. In every case four age groups of mortality were considered because of the large influence of child growth: neonatal (less than 1 month of life), postneonatal infant (between 1 month and 1 year old), childhood (1-5 years old), and youth (5-20 years old). The Alpujarran prereproductive mortality pattern can be summarized as the result of three main risk factors: biodemographic, biomechanical, and social and health determinants. In general, every factor showed a decreased effect as children grew. The most sig...