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. 2024 Aug 1;144(2):252-255.
doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000005628. Epub 2024 May 30.

Pregnancy-Related Deaths Due to Hemorrhage: Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System, 2012-2019

Lisa M Hollier  1 , Ashley Busacker, Fanny Njie, Carla Syverson, David A Goodman
Affiliations

Pregnancy-Related Deaths Due to Hemorrhage: Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System, 2012-2019

Lisa M Hollier et al. Obstet Gynecol. .

Abstract

Hemorrhage has been a leading cause of pregnancy-related death in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System since 1987 when reporting began. Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System data from 2012 to 2019 were analyzed to describe pregnancy-related deaths from hemorrhage. Pregnancy-related mortality ratios were estimated for hemorrhage overall and by hemorrhage subclassifications. Specific subclassifications of hemorrhage-related deaths were analyzed by sociodemographic characteristics. Overall, there were 606 deaths due to hemorrhage. The pregnancy-related mortality ratio for hemorrhage overall was 1.94 per 100,000 live births. Ruptured ectopic pregnancy was the most frequent subclassification (22.9%) of pregnancy-related hemorrhage deaths, followed by postpartum hemorrhage (21.2%). There were no significant trends in the pregnancy-related mortality ratio, overall or among any subclassification of hemorrhage deaths, from 2012 to 2019. Reporting subclassifications of pregnancy-related hemorrhage deaths could improve the ability to focus interventions and assess progress over time.

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Conflict of interest statement

Financial Disclosure The authors did not report any potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Cause-specific pregnancy-related mortality ratios and 95% CIs for deaths with underlying cause of hemorrhage,* Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System, 2012–2019. *Figure excludes pregnancy-related deaths attributable to unknown hemorrhage subclassification. Pregnancy-related mortality ratios were not calculated for placenta previa for all year groupings and for placental abruption for 2014–2015 because PRMRs based on <8 deaths are considered not reliable for reporting. PRMR, pregnancy-related mortality ratio. Hollier. Pregnancy-Related Deaths due to Hemorrhage. Obstet Gynecol 2024.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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