November 22, 2018

MBRRACE-UK releases Saving Lives, Improving Mothers’ Care

The fifth annual MBRRACE-UK report of Saving Lives, Improving Mothers’ Care was published on 1st November 2018. The number of women dying as a consequence of complications during or after pregnancy remains low in the UK – fewer than 10 of every 100,000 pregnant women die in pregnancy or around childbirth. However, there are striking inequalities: black women are five times and Asian women two times more likely to die as a result of complications in pregnancy than white women and urgent research and action to understand these disparities is needed.

Heart disease remains the leading cause of women dying during pregnancy or up to six weeks after giving birth, followed by blood clots. The report highlights the risk of blood clots, particularly among women who are overweight or obese, and emphasises the importance of awareness of symptoms, such as leg or buttock pain and breathlessness even in early pregnancy.

Women who are aged 40 or over have three times the risk of dying during or after pregnancy compared to women in their early 20s.

Download the full report, lay summary and an infograpic at www.npeu.ox.ac.uk/mbrrace-uk/reports