Perinatal mortality in ministry of health hospitals - Bahrain, 1985 and 1996

The study aims at comparing the perinatal mortality rates of Bahrain in 1985 and in 1996 for significance and trends, and to put forward suggestions for improvement. This is a retrospective descriptive study of vital statistics pertinent to perinatal mortality for the year 1985 and the year 1996 of Ministry of Health [MOH] hospitals, Bahrain. Perinatal mortality rate was 19.7 and 16.6 per 1000 total births for 1985 and 1996 respectively. Hyaline membrane disease contributed to 27% of neonatal deaths. There is a significant improvement the cause of 45.9% of early neonatal deaths. There is a significant improvement in perinatal mortality rate and survival of preterm babies with hyaline membrane disease. A national plan that aims at defining guidelines related to fetal viability, rescue and care of extremely preterm babies would likely result in further improvement in perinatal care in Bahrain