Maternal mortality rates in the last eight years: A university hospital-based study from Turkey.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the cause of changing maternal mortality ratios (MMRs) in a tertiary women's health center in Turkey in the last eight years.


METHODS
Charts of patients seen between 1998 and 2005 were retrospectively reviewed. Statistical analysis was performed using the Chi-square test. The results were accepted to be significant when the p value was <0.05.


RESULTS
During this period, 27 pregnancy-related deaths were identified via hospital death records. The MMR was found to have decreased in rate by approximately 50% from 822.2/100,000 live births in the previous report including the years 1978-1997 to 412.0/100,000 during the last eight years (p < 0.01). Pregnancy-induced hypertension was still the most frequent cause of maternal death. The decrease in MMR was due to the decrease in the ratio of maternal infection (26.4% in 1978-1997 to 7.4% in 1998-2005, p < 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
Although treatment in the antenatal care and health service has decreased maternal deaths, it was discovered that the MMR has not reached the optimum levels found in developed countries in the last eight years. Also the percentage of direct obstetric deaths (with the exception of those caused by infection) showed no change and was similar to that found in the previous report (1978-1997).
Malatyalioglu
Erdal
E
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, University of Ondokuz Mayis, Samsun, Turkey. halukem@yahoo.com
Kokcu
Arif
A
Cetinkaya
Mehmet B
MB
Alper
Tayfun
T
Tosun
Migraci
M
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D008428:Maternal Mortality / Q000639:trends*; D008499:Medical Records; D008875:Middle Aged; D018743:Perinatal Care; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology