Leading cause of maternal mortality revealed in study

A study released last April recorded deaths occurring in early pregnancy up to one year after childbirth during the period from 2016 to 2018. The aim was to determine the causes.

Maternal deaths in France

The study on “maternal deaths in France from 2016 to 2018″ aimed to assess the impact of motherhood on women. And one of the conclusions is that “Suicide becomes the leading cause of maternal mortality considered up to one year after the end of pregnancy”. Therefore, the analysis demonstrates that the ““The health of pregnant women goes beyond the strictly obstetric sphere”.

The main causes of maternal deaths

According to an infographic published by INSERM and Santé Publique France, the main causes of maternal death, from conception to one year after childbirth, are:

• Suicides at 17%;
• Cardiovascular diseases at 15%;
• Amniotic embolisms 8%;
• Strokes 7%;
• Venous thromboembolism 7%;
• Obstetric hemorrhages 7%.

The women most affected by these deaths are older women, migrant women, women living in overseas departments and regions, obese women and socially vulnerable women.

Better prevention of maternal deaths

The study states that “60% of deaths are potentially avoidable through better support for women before, during and after childbirth”. It is also stressed that it is important to develop particular vigilance with regard to certain risks. In particular in the prevention of suicides, the analysis insists on the fact that ““Research and dare to address depression at the first signs of distress”. To achieve this, the societal environment, institutions and care teams all have a role to play, with prevention being ““everyone’s business”.

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