Incidence and characteristics of pregnancy-related death across ten low- and middle-income geographical regions: secondary analysis of a cluster randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this article is to describe the incidence and characteristics of pregnancy-related death in low- and middle-resource settings, in relation to the availability of key obstetric resources. DESIGN: This is a secondary analysis of a stepped-wedge cluster randomised controlled trial. SETTING: This trial was undertaken at ten sites across eight low- and middle-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa, India and Haiti. POPULATION: Institutional-level consent was obtained and all women presenting for maternity care were eligible for inclusion. METHODS: Pregnancy-related deaths were collected prospectively from routine data sources and active case searching. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Pregnancy-related death, place, timing and age of maternal death, and neonatal outcomes in women with this outcome. RESULTS: Over 20 months, in 536 233 deliveries there were 998 maternal deaths (18.6/10 000, range 28/10 000-630/10 000). The leading causes of death were obstetric haemorrhage (36.0%, n = 359), hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (20.6%, n = 206), sepsis (14.1%, n = 141) and other (26.5%, n = 264). Approximately a quarter of deaths occurred prior to delivery (28.4%, n = 283), 35.7% (n = 356) occurred on the day of delivery and 35.9% (n = 359) occurred after delivery. Half of maternal deaths (50.6%; n = 505) occurred in women aged 20-29 years, 10.3% (n = 103) occurred in women aged under 20 years, 34.5% (n = 344) occurred in women aged 30-39 years and 4.6% (n = 46) occurred in women aged ≥40 years. There was no measured association between the availability of key obstetric resources and the rate of pregnancy-related death. CONCLUSIONS: The large variation in the rate of pregnancy-related death, irrespective of resource availability, emphasises that inequality and inequity in health care persists. TWEETABLE ABSTRACT: Inequality and inequity in pregnancy-related death persists globally, irrespective of resource availability.

A randomized clinical trial evaluating prophylactic single-dose vs prolonged course of antibiotics for caesarean section in a high HIV-prevalence setting.

The evidence that perioperative antibiotics for caesarean delivery are effective in reducing infective morbidity is unequivocal. In developing countries, especially those with high HIV-prevalence, clinicians have increasingly become anxious about the efficacy of perioperative antibiotics, hence the adoption of treatment regimens, as described in this study. We set out to investigate if these fears have a basis by conducting a randomised clinical trial. The setting was two tertiary units in a developing country with a significant HIV-prevalence. The outcome measures assessed were: pyrexia, wound infection, admission with puerperal sepsis, laparotomy for pelvic abscess and duration of hospital stay. There was no statistically significant difference between the two arms of the study with regard to the above outcomes. Our conclusion is that the two antibiotic regimens are equivalent in preventing infection, therefore there is no justification for subjecting patients to week-long antibiotics and the unnecessary increase in nurse workload.