A Research Study on Maternal Deaths which Occurred in Govt. General Hospital, Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh from January to December 2016

Maternal death is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as “the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management but not from accidental or incidental causes.

The world maternal mortality rate has declined 44% since 1990, but still every day 830 women die from pregnancy or childbirth related causes. Most of these deaths and injuries are entirely preventable. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimated that 289, 000 women died of pregnancy or childbirth related causes in 2013. The global maternal mortality ratio has fallen from 380 maternal deaths per 100, 000 live births in 1990 to 210 deaths per 1, 00, 000 live births in 2013, and many countries halved their maternal death rates in the last 10 years.

In India, 45, 000 women die every year during childbirth according to WHO. The number of deaths in India during childbirth accounts for 17 per cent of such deaths globally. The World Health Organisation (WHO) said the major cause of maternal deaths is Post-Partum Haemorrhage (PPH), which is often defined as the loss of more than 500-1, 000 ml of blood within the first 24 hours following childbirth. Based on the World Health Statistics (WHS) 2016, the MMR (Maternal Maternity Rate) of India is 174/100, 000 live births. Minister of State for Health in a written reply in Indian Parliament, had recently said MMR of India has shown a decline from 212 per 1, 00, 000 live births in 2007–09 to 167 per 1, 00, 000 live births in 2011–13, as per the latest report of the Registrar General of India, Sample Registration System (RGI-SRS). India had earlier said its MMR registered a 5.7 per cent decline and, if it continues to fall at this rate, the country will achieve its Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of MMR of 139 per 100, 000 live births.

Public health, technological and policy approaches are steps that can be taken to drastically reduce the global maternal death. The maternal deaths can be decreased by Improving access to antenatal care in pregnancy, skilled care during childbirth, improved asepsis, fluid management & blood transfusion, and better prenatal care. Most maternal deaths are avoidable, as the health care solutions to prevent or manage complications are well known. Other approaches include avoiding pregnancy at too young of an age or too old of an age and spacing births. Access to primary care for women even before they become pregnant is essential along with access to contraceptives.