Why Mothers Die 1997-1999: The Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths in the United Kingdom - Softcover

Lewis, Gwyneth; Drife, James

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1900364654 ISBN 13: 9781900364652

Publisher: RCOG Press, 2001

Synopsis

This Report, the first published in this millennium and the fifth covering the United Kingdom as a whole, continues the unbroken series of Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths (CEMD) which started in 1952 for England and Wales, 1956 for Northern Ireland and 1965 for Scotland. All CEMD reports are important, but this, covering maternal deaths occurring between 1997 and 1999, is possibly one of the most significant to have been published to date. The reasons for this include: For the first time, this Report has been able to more fully evaluate other factors that may have played a part in the woman's death. These findings are of great concern, showing the maternal mortality rates amongst the socially excluded, including women from lower socio-economic classes, very young girls and specific ethnic groups, are higher than amongst the population as a whole. * The results show, sometimes in dramatic fashion, that the routine use of national guidelines can work. In this triennium, following the routine introduction and use of guidelines developed in part as a result of findings and recommendations from previous CEMD Reports, there have been significant decreases in deaths from pulmonary embolism and sepsis following Caesarean section. In the very few cases where deaths occurred from these causes, guidelines do not appear to have been followed. * Women are still dying of potentially treatable conditions where the use of simple diagnostic guidelines may help identify conditions such as ectopic pregnancy, sepsis and pulmonary embolism. The diagnosis of many of these cases was missed in the primary care or Accident and Emergency setting. * For the first time the number of Indirect deaths, from medical conditions exacerbated by pregnancy, is greater than deaths from conditions that directly arise from pregnancy. Indirect deaths are of no less importance than Direct deaths and the recommendations in this Report for Indirect deaths must be regarded with equal importance to those that have been made for Direct deaths in previous reports.

About this edition

• Publisher: RCOG Press
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 1900364654
• ISBN 13: 9781900364652
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 365