The average life expectancy in the United States at the time of birth has increased dramatically over the past century. This paper examines the historical effects of prenatal causes of death on the post-conception life expectancy in the United States from 1925 to 2005. The mortality rates from uterine implantation failure, unrecognized and recognized miscarriage, stillbirth, legal abortion, and embryonic death related to in vitro fertilization were utilized to determine the post-conception life expectancy. The historical changes in the incidence of different causes of prenatal death are presented. The utility of using post-conception life expectancy to evaluate the causes and to plan approaches to improve the chances of survival of human beings in the embryonic and fetal stages of life is discussed.
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