CDC researchers found that the overall rate of infant deaths due to birth defects in the US dropped by 10% between 2003 and 2017, with declines of 12% among whites, 11% among blacks and 4% among Hispanics during the same period. The findings, reported in the agency's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, also showed that the prevalence of birth defect-related infant mortality decreased by 20% to 29% among those born late-term or post-term, full-term or extremely preterm between 2003 and 2017, but rose by 17% among moderate and late preterm babies during the same period.