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Maternal mortality in the United States

Number of deaths from any cause related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management (excluding accidental or incidental causes) during pregnancy and childbirth or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, per 100,000 births

Maternal mortality refers to the death of a woman during her pregnancy or up to a year after her pregnancy has terminated; this only includes causes related to her pregnancy and does not include accidental causes.[1] Some sources will define maternal mortality as the death of a woman up to 42 days after her pregnancy has ended, instead of one year.[2] In 1986, the CDC began tracking pregnancy related deaths to gather information and determine what was causing these deaths by creating the Pregnancy-Related Mortality Surveillance System.[1] Although the United States was spending more on healthcare than any other country in the world, more than two women died during childbirth every day, making maternal mortality in the United States the highest when compared to 49 other countries in the developed world.[3] The CDC reported an increase in the maternal mortality ratio in the United States from 18.8 deaths per 100,000 births to 23.8 deaths per 100,000 births between 2000 and 2014, a 26.6% increase;[4] and in 2016, as many as 900 women between the ages of 16 and 43 died from pregnancy- and childbirth-related causes.[5] It is estimated that 20-50% of these deaths are due to preventable causes, such as: hemorrhage, severe high blood pressure, and infection.[6]

Contents

Monitoring maternal mortalityEdit

In 1986, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) created the Pregnancy-Related Mortality Surveillance System to monitor maternal deaths during pregnancy and up to one year after giving birth. Prior to this, women were monitored up to 6 weeks postpartum.[1]

In 2016 the CDC Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) undertook a collaborative initiative—"Building U.S. Capacity to Review and Prevent Maternal Deaths"— funded by Merck under the Merck for Mothers program. They are reviewing maternal mortality to enhance understanding of the increase in the maternal mortality ratio in the United States, and to identify preventative interventions.[7] Through this initiative, they have created Review to Action website which hosts their reports and resources. In their 2017 report, four states, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, and Ohio, supported the development of the Maternal Mortality Review Data System (MMRDS) which was intended as a precursor to the Maternal Mortality Review Information Application (MMRIA).[8] The three agencies have partnered with Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, and Utah to collect data for the Maternal Mortality Review Information Application (MMRIA); the nine states submitted their first reports in 2018.[9]

After decades of inaction on the part of the U.S. Congress towards reducing the maternal mortality ratio, the United States Senate Committee on Appropriations voted on June 28, 2018 to request $50 million to prevent the pregnancy-related deaths of American women.[10] The CDC would receive $12 million for research and data collection. They would also support individual states in counting and reviewing data on maternal deaths.[10] The federal Maternal and Child Health Bureau would receive the remaining $38 million directed towards Healthy Start program and "life saving, evidence-based programs" at hospitals.[10] MCHB's Healthy Start was mandated to reduce the infant mortality rate.[11]

 
Graph showing the trend in pregnancy related deaths in the United States from 1987 to 2014.

Measurement and data collectionEdit

According to a 2016 article in Obstetrics and Gynecology by MacDorman et al, one factor affecting the US maternal death rate is the variability in calculation of maternal deaths. The WHO deems maternal deaths to be those occurring within 42 days of the end of pregnancy, whereas the United States Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System measures maternal deaths as those occurring within a year of the end of pregnancy.[4] Some states allow multiple responses, such as whether death occurred during pregnancy, within 42 days after pregnancy, or within a year of pregnancy, but some states, such as California, ask simply whether death occurred within a year postpartum.[4]

In their article, the authors described how data collection on maternal mortality rates became an "international embarrassment".[4][12]:427 In 2003 the national U.S. standard death certificate added a "tick box" question regarding the pregnancy status of the deceased. Many states delayed adopting the new death certificate standards. This "muddied" data and obstructed analysis of trends in maternal mortality rates. It also meant that for many years, the United States could not report a national maternal mortality rate to the OECD or other repositories that collect data internationally.[4][12]:427

In response to the MacDorman study, revealing the "inability, or unwillingness, of states and the federal government to track maternal deaths",[5] ProPublica and NPR found that in 2016 alone, between 700 and 900 women died from pregnancy- and childbirth-related causes. In "Lost Mothers" they published stories of some of women who died. They ranged in age from 16 to 43.[5]

Healthy People is a federal organization that is managed by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In 2010, the US maternal mortality ratio was 12.7 (deaths per 100,000 live births). This was 3 times as high as the Healthy People 2010 goal, a national target set by the US government.[13]

According to a 2009 article in Anthropology News, studies conducted by but not limited to Amnesty International, the United Nations, and federal programs such as the CDC, maternal mortality has not decreased since 1999 and may have been rising.[14]

By November 2017, Baltimore and Philadelphia, and New York City had established committees to "review deaths and severe complications related to pregnancy and childbirth" in their cities to prevent maternal mortality. New York's panel, the Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee (M3RC) doctors, nurses, "doulas, midwives and social workers".[15] New York City will be collaborating with the State of New York, the first such collaboration in the US.[15] In July 2018, New York City's de Blasio's administration announced that it would be allocating $12.8 million for the first three years of its five-year plan to "reduce maternal deaths and life-threatening complications of childbirth among women of color".[16]

CausesEdit

Medical causesEdit

 
This figure shows the top causes of pregnancy related deaths in the United States from 2011-2014.

Maternal death can be traced to maternal health, which includes wellness throughout the entire pregnancy and access to basic care.[17] More than half of maternal deaths occur within the first 42 days after birth. Race, location, and financial status all contribute to how maternal mortality affects women across the country.

In response to the high maternal mortality ratio, in 2013 the Department of State to created the Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force. According to Amnesty International's 2010 report, five medical conditions collectively account for 74% of maternal deaths in the US.

  1. Embolism (blood clots)
  2. Hemorrhage (bleeding)
  3. Pre-eclampsia
  4. Infection
  5. Cardiomyopathy [18]

Postpartum depression is widely untreated and unrecognized, leading to suicide. Suicide is one of the most significant causes of maternal mortality,[19] and reported to be the number one cause by many studies.[20]

Social factorsEdit

Social determinants of health also contribute to the maternal mortality rate. Some of these factors include access to healthcare, education, race, and income.[21]

Access to healthcareEdit

Women in the US usually meet with their physicians just once after delivery, six weeks after giving birth. Due to this long gap during the postpartum period, many health problems remain unchecked, which can result in maternal death.[22] Just as women, especially women of color, have difficulty with access to prenatal care, the same is true for accessibility to postpartum care. Also, postpartum depression can also lead to untimely deaths for both mother and child.[22]

Insurance companies reserve the right to categorize pregnancy as a pre-existing condition, thereby making women ineligible for private health insurance. Even access to Medicaid is curtailed to some women, due to bureaucracy and delays in coverage (if approved). Many women are turned down due to Medicaid fees, as well. Women have also reported access and mobility as reasons why they are unable to seek prenatal care, such as lack of transportation and/or lack of health insurance. Women who do not have access to prenatal care are 3-4 times more likely to die during or after pregnancy than women who do.[23]

EducationEdit

It has been shown that mothers between ages 18 and 44 who did not complete high school had a 5% increase in maternal mortality versus women who completed high school.[23]

RaceEdit

African American women are four times as likely to suffer from maternal morbidity and mortality than Caucasian women,[3] and there has been no large-scale improvement over the course of 20 years to rectify these conditions.[24] Furthermore, women of color, especially "African-American, Indigenous, Latina and immigrant women and women who did not speak English", are deterred from seeking the care they need, due to discrimination.[3]

IncomeEdit

Studies have shown that women are affected by the stress of being lower income, which then affects their pregnancies and unborn babies. In the US, women of color disproportionately experience stress related to financial burdens and racism when trying to gain access to healthcare. These women have a harder time maintaining or gaining access to healthy nutrition and even safe housing. These social factors are directly linked to the outcome of maternal care.[citation needed]

It is estimated that 99% of women give birth in hospitals with fees that average between $8,900-$11,400 for vaginal delivery, and between $14,900-$20,100 for a cesarean.[3] Many women cannot afford these high costs, nor can they afford private health insurance, and even waiting on government-funded care can prove to be fatal, since delays to coverage usually result in women not getting the care they need from the start.

Other risk factorsEdit

Some other risk factors include obesity, chronic high blood pressure, increased age, diabetes, cesarean delivery, and smoking. Attending less than 10 prenatal visits is also associated with a higher risk of maternal mortality.[23]

The Healthy People 2010 goal was to reduce the c-section rate to 15% for low-risk first-time mothers, but that goal was not met and the rate of c-sections has been on the rise since 1996, and reached an all-time high in 2009 at 32.9%.[clarification needed] Excessive and non-medically necessary cesareans can lead to complications that contribute to maternal mortality.[3]

PreventionEdit

Inconsistent obstetric practice,[25] increase in women with chronic conditions, and lack of maternal health data all contribute to maternal mortality in the United States. According to a 2015 WHO editorial, a nationally implemented guideline for pregnancy and childbirth, along with easy and equal access to prenatal services and care, and active participation from all 50 states to produce better maternal health data are all necessary components to reduce maternal mortality.[26] The Hospital Corporation of America has also found that a uniform guideline for birth can improve maternal care overall. This would ultimately reduce the amount of maternal injury, c-sections, and mortality. The UK has had success drastically reducing preeclampsia deaths by implementing a nationwide standard protocol.[25] However, no such mandated guideline currently exists in the United States.[3]

To prevent maternal mortality moving forward, Amnesty International suggests these steps:

  1. Increase government accountability and coordination
  2. Create a national registry for maternal and infant health data, while incorporating intersections of gender, race, and social/economic factors
  3. Improve maternity care workforce
  4. Improve diversity in maternity care

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, out-of-hospital births (such as home births and birthing centers with midwifery assistance) "generally provided a lower risk profile than hospital births." [27]

Procedures such as Episiotomies and cesareans, while helpful in some cases, when administered unnecessarily increase the risk of maternal death.[3] Midwifery and mainstream obstetric care can be complementary,[14] which is commonly the case in Canada, where women have a wide arrange of pregnancy and birthing options, wherein informed choice and consent are fundamental tenants of their reformed maternity care.[28] The maternal mortality rate is two times lower in Canada than the United States, according to a global survey conducted by the United Nations and the World Bank.[29]

Gender bias and obstetric violence in the medical field are also important factors when discussing maternal wellness, care, and death in the United States.[30]

Comparisons by stateEdit

In the U.S., hospital bills for maternal healthcare costs over $98 billion, and concerns about the degradation of the maternal resulted in a state-by-state breakdown.

Maternal Mortality by State in 2018[2]
State Status MMR*
California 1 4.5
Massachusetts 2 6.1
Nevada 3 6.2
Colorado 4 11.3
Hawaii 5 11.7
West Virgina 5 11.7
Alabama 7 11.0
Minnesota 8 13.0
Connecticut 9 13.2
Oregon 10 13.7
Delaware 11 14.0
Wisconsin 12 14.3
Washington 13 14.8
Virginia 14 15.6
Maine 15 15.7
North Carolina 16 15.8
Pennsylvania 17 16.3
Illinois 18 16.6
Nebraska 19 16.8
New Hampshire 19 16.8
Utah 19 16.8
Kansas 22 17.7
Iowa 23 17.9
Rhode Island 24 18.3
Arizona 25 18.8
North Dakota 26 18.9
Kentucky 27 19.4
Michigan 27 19.4
Ohio 29 20.3
New York 30 20.6
Idaho 31 21.2
Mississipi 32 22.6
Tennessee 33 23.3
Oklahoma 34 23.4
Maryland 35 23.5
Florida 36 23.8
Montana 37 24.4
Wyoming 38 24.6
New Mexico 39 25.6
South Carolina 40 26.5
South Dakota 41 28.0
Missouri 42 32.6
Texas 43 34.2
Arkansas 44 34.8
New Jersey 45 38.1
Indiana 46 41.4
Louisiana 47 44.8
Georgia 48 46.2

No data on Alaska and Vermont.

*MMR: maternal mortality ratio- number of deaths per 100,000 births.[2]

Comparisons with other countriesEdit

Comparison of the US maternal death rate to the death rate in that of other countries is complicated by the lack of standardization. Some countries do not have a standard method for reporting maternal deaths and some count in statistics death only as a direct result of pregnancy.[31]

In the 1950s, the maternal mortality rate in the United Kingdom and the United States was the same—1 in 1000 pregnant and new mothers died. By 2018, the rate in the UK was three times lower than in the United States,[32] due to implementing a standardized protocol.[25] In 2010, Amnesty International published a 154-page report on maternal mortality in the United States.[18] In 2011, the United Nations described maternal mortality as a human rights issue at the forefront of American healthcare, as the mortality rates worsened over the years.[33] According to a 2015 WHO report, in the United States the MMR between 1990 and 2013 "more than doubled from an estimated 12 to 28 maternal deaths per 100,000 births."[34] By 2015, the United States had a higher MMR than the "Islamic Republic of Iran, Libya and Turkey".[26][35] In the 2017 NPR and ProPublica series "Lost Mothers: Maternal Mortality in the U.S." based on a six-month long collaborative investigation, they reported that the United States has the highest rate of maternal mortality than any other developed country, and it is the only country where mortality rate has been rising.[36] The maternal mortality rate in the United States is three times higher than that in neighboring Canada[25] and six times higher than in Scandinavia.[37]

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ a b c "Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System | Maternal and Infant Health | CDC". www.cdc.gov. 2018-08-07. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  2. ^ a b c America's Health Rankings. "Maternal Mortality in the United States in 2018". United Health Foundation. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Deadly delivery : the maternal health care crisis in the USA. Amnesty International. London, England: Amnesty International Publications. 2010. ISBN 9780862104580. OCLC 694184792.
  4. ^ a b c d e MacDorman, Marian F.; Declercq, Eugene; Cabral, Howard; Morton, Christine (2016). "Is the United States Maternal Mortality Rate Increasing? Disentangling trends from measurement issues Short title: U.S. Maternal Mortality Trends". Obstetrics and gynecology. 128 (3): 447–455. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001556. ISSN 0029-7844. PMC 5001799.
  5. ^ a b c Martin, Nina; Cillekens, Emma; Freitas, Alessandra (July 17, 2017). "Lost Mothers". ProPublica. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  6. ^ Troiano, Nan H.; Witcher, Patricia M. (2018). "Maternal Mortality and Morbidity in the United States". The Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing. 32 (3): 222–231. doi:10.1097/jpn.0000000000000349. ISSN 0893-2190.
  7. ^ "Building U.S. Capacity to Review and Prevent Maternal Deaths". CDC Foundation. n.d. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  8. ^ "Report from Maternal Mortality Review Committees: A View Into Their Critical Role" (PDF). CDC Foundation. Building U.S. Capacity to Review and Prevent Maternal Deaths. January 1, 2017. p. 51. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  9. ^ Reports from Maternal Mortality Review Committees (Report). Building U.S. Capacity to Review and Prevent Maternal Deaths. CDC. 2018. p. 76.
  10. ^ a b c Martin, Nina (June 28, 2018). "U.S. Senate Committee Proposes $50 Million to Prevent Mothers Dying in Childbirth". Lost Mothers: Maternal Mortality in the U.S. ProPublica. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  11. ^ "Healthy Start". Mchb.hrsa.gov. Retrieved 2013-12-31.
  12. ^ a b Chescheir, Nancy C. (September 2016). "Drilling Down on Maternal Mortality". Obstetrics & Gynecology. 128 (3): 427–8. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001600. PMID 27500323.
  13. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) | Healthy People 2020". www.healthypeople.gov. Retrieved 2017-07-26.
  14. ^ a b Morton, Christine H. "Where Are the Ethnographies of US Hospital Birth?" Anthropology News 50.3 (2009): 10-11. Web.
  15. ^ a b Fields, Robin (November 15, 2017). "New York City Launches Committee to Review Maternal Deaths". ProPublica. Lost Mothers. Retrieved August 4, 2018. Nationally, such data is so unreliable and incomplete that the United States has not published official annual counts of fatalities or an official maternal mortality rate in a decade.
  16. ^ "De Blasio Administration Launches Comprehensive Plan to Reduce Maternal Deaths and Life-Threatening Complications from Childbirth Among Women of Color". NYC. July 20, 2018. Retrieved August 4, 2018. Severe maternal morbidity is defined as life-threatening complications of childbirth; maternal mortality is defined as a death of a woman while pregnant or within one year of the termination of pregnancy due to any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management.
  17. ^ Kilpatrick, Sarah J (2015-03-01). "Next Steps to Reduce Maternal Morbidity and Mortality in the USA". Women's Health. 11 (2): 193–199. doi:10.2217/whe.14.80.
  18. ^ a b "Deadly Delivery: The Maternal Healthcare Crisis in the USA". Amnesty International. London, UK. 2010-03-10. p. 154. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  19. ^ Williams manual of pregnancy complications. Leveno, Kenneth J., Alexander, James M., 1965- (23rd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Medical. 2013. ISBN 9780071765626. OCLC 793223461.
  20. ^ Palladino, C.L.; Singh, V.; Campbell, J.; Flynn, H.; Gold, K.J. (2011-11-01). "Homicide and Suicide During the Perinatal Period". Obstetric Anesthesia Digest. 32 (4): 217–218. doi:10.1097/01.aoa.0000422697.74027.32. ISSN 0275-665X.
  21. ^ Ayala Quintanilla, Beatriz Paulina; Taft, Angela; McDonald, Susan; Pollock, Wendy; Roque Henriquez, Joel Christian (2016-11-28). "Social determinants and maternal exposure to intimate partner violence of obstetric patients with severe maternal morbidity in the intensive care unit: a systematic review protocol". BMJ Open. 6 (11): e013270. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2016-013270. ISSN 2044-6055.
  22. ^ a b Murray Horwitz, Mara E.; Molina, Rose L.; Snowden, Jonathan M. (2018-11-01). "Postpartum Care in the United States — New Policies for a New Paradigm". New England Journal of Medicine. 379 (18): 1691–1693. doi:10.1056/nejmp1806516. ISSN 0028-4793.
  23. ^ a b c Nelson, Daniel B.; Moniz, Michelle H.; Davis, Matthew M. (2018-08-13). "Population-level factors associated with maternal mortality in the United States, 1997–2012". BMC Public Health. 18 (1). doi:10.1186/s12889-018-5935-2. ISSN 1471-2458.
  24. ^ "Maternal Health – Amnesty International USA". Amnesty International USA. Retrieved 2017-07-26.
  25. ^ a b c d Martin, Nina; Montagne, Renee (May 12, 2017). "Focus On Infants During Childbirth Leaves U.S. Moms In Danger". Lost Mothers: Maternal Mortality in the U.S. ProPublica NPR. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  26. ^ a b Agrawal, Priya (March 2015). "Maternal mortality and morbidity in the United States of America". Bulletin of the World Health Organization. pp. 133–208. doi:10.2471/BLT.14.148627. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  27. ^ MacDorman, Marian F., T. J. Mathews, Eugene R. Declercq, and National Center for Health Statistics , Issuing Body. Trends in Out-of-hospital Births in the United States, 1990-2012. NCHS Data Brief (Series) ; No. 144. 2014.
  28. ^ MacDonald, Margaret. Chapter 4, At Work in the Field of Birth. 2007. Vanderbilt University Press.
  29. ^ "U.S. maternal mortality rate is twice that of Canada: U.N". Reuters. 2015-11-12. Retrieved 2017-08-02.
  30. ^ Diaz-Tello, Farah. "Invisible Wounds: Obstetric Violence in the United States." Reproductive Health Matters 24, no. 47 (2016): 56-64.
  31. ^ "Medscape". www.medscape.com.
  32. ^ Womersley, Kate (August 31, 2017). "Why Giving Birth Is Safer in Britain Than in the U.S." ProPublica. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  33. ^ "Deadly Delivery: The Maternal Healthcare Crisis in the USA One Year Update 2011" (PDF). Amnesty International. New York. May 7, 2011. (pdf file: link). Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  34. ^ Trends in maternal mortality: 1990 to 2013. Estimates by WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, The World Bank and the United Nations Population Division (PDF). World Health Organization (Report). Geneva. 2014. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  35. ^ Maternal mortality in 1990-2015 (PDF). World Health Organization (Report). Trends in maternal mortality: 1990 to 2015. Geneva: WHO. 2005. Retrieved August 4, 2018. WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, World Bank Group and the United Nations Population Division
  36. ^ Martin, Nina; Montagne, Renee (May 12, 2017). "U.S. Has The Worst Rate Of Maternal Deaths In The Developed World". Lost Mothers: Maternal Mortality in the U.S. ProPublica NPR. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  37. ^ Martin, Nina; Montagne, Renee (May 12, 2017). "The Last Person You'd Expect to Die in Childbirth". Lost Mothers: Maternal Mortality in the U.S. ProPublica. Retrieved August 4, 2018.

External linksEdit

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