Trends and causes of maternal mortality in Ethiopia during 1990-2013: findings from the Global Burden of Diseases study 2013.
Maternal mortality is noticeably high in sub-Saharan African countries including Ethiopia. Continuous nationwide systematic evaluation and assessment of the problem helps to design appropriate policy and strategy in Ethiopia. This study aimed to investigate the trends and causes of maternal mortality in Ethiopia between 1990 and 2013.



We used the Global Burden of Diseases and Risk factors (GBD) Study 2013 data that was collected from multiple sources at national and subnational levels. Spatio-temporal Gaussian Process Regression (ST-GPR) was applied to generate best estimates of maternal mortality with 95% Uncertainty Intervals (UI). Causes of death were measured using Cause of Death Ensemble modelling (CODEm). The modified UNAIDS EPP/SPECTRUM suite model was used to estimate HIV related maternal deaths.



In Ethiopia, a total of 16,740 (95% UI: 14,197, 19,271) maternal deaths occurred in 1990 whereas there were 15,234 (95% UI: 11,378, 19,871) maternal deaths occurred in 2013. This finding shows that Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) in Ethiopia was still high in the study period. There was a minimal but insignificant change of MMR over the last 23 years. The results revealed Ethiopia is below the target of Millennium Development Goals (MGDs) related to MMR. The top five causes of maternal mortality in 2013 were other direct maternal causes such as complications of anaesthesia, embolism (air, amniotic fluid, and blood clot), and the condition of peripartum cardiomyopathy (25.7%), complications of abortions (19.6%), maternal haemorrhage (12.2%), hypertensive disorders (10.3%), and maternal sepsis and other maternal infections such as influenza, malaria, tuberculosis, and hepatitis (9.6%). Most of the maternal mortality happened during the postpartum period and majority of the deaths occurred at the age group of 20-29 years. Overall trend showed that there was a decline from 708 per 100,000 live births in 1990 to 497 per 100,000 in 2013. The annual rate of change over these years was -1.6 (95% UI: -2.8 to -0.3).



The findings of the study highlight the need for comprehensive efforts using multisectoral collaborations from stakeholders for reducing maternal mortality in Ethiopia. It is worthwhile for policies to focus on postpartum period.
Institute of Public Health, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia. agizachew@gmail.com.|School of Public Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia. agizachew@gmail.com.
Gizachew Assefa
GA
Tessema
School of Public Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.
Caroline O
CO
Laurence
Population Research and Outcome Studies, School of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.|School of Public Health, Mekelle University, Mekelle, Ethiopia.
Yohannes Adama
YA
Melaku
Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle, USA.
Awoke
A
Misganaw
Maternal and Child Health Directorate, Federal Ministry of Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Sintayehu A
SA
Woldie
Maternal and Child Health Directorate, Federal Ministry of Health, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Abiye
A
Hiruye
School of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.|College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.|Department of Epidemiology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Azmeraw T
AT
Amare
Ethiopian Public Health Association, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Yihunie
Y
Lakew
Institute of Public Health, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Berihun M
BM
Zeleke
Population KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Kilifi, Kenya.|Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.|St. Paul Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Amare
A
Deribew
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002423:Cause of Death; D002648:Child; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D000071219:Global Burden of Disease / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008428:Maternal Mortality; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult
Ethiopia; Global Burden of Diseases; Maternal mortality; Trends