Approximately 800 women die from pregnancy or childbirth-related complications around the world every day. Ninety-nine percent of these deaths occur in developing countries (World Health Organization, 2019). To improve maternal health worldwide, barriers that limit access to quality maternal health services must be identified and addressed at all levels of the health system. Advocating for greater awareness and attention to preeclampsia within broader maternal health initiatives, identifying and supporting improvements to health care delivery – in all settings, and encouraging empowerment and engagement of women through effective preeclampsia education is essential.
Preeclampsia is a common factor in preterm delivery and accounts for 20% of all neonatal intensive care admissions. For the mother, complications can cause lengthy illness and are strongly associated with the future development of debilitating diseases such as cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, and renal impairment.
The World Health Organization has highlighted that the condition has a highly disproportionate impact on low-to-middle income countries (LMIC), where over 99% of preeclampsia-related deaths occur. It is estimated that 16% of maternal deaths in LMICs result from preeclampsia and other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. It is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the Americas, accounting for a quarter of all maternal deaths in Latin America, and a tenth of maternal deaths in Africa and Asia.
Resources
- Pre-eclampsia Education for All Moms: Strategies for Improving Pregnancy Outcomes
- New Resource for Managing Postpartum Hemorrhage and Pre-eclampsia/Eclampsia
- Exposure to preeclampsia in utero affects growth from birth to late childhood dependent on child’s sex and severity of exposure: Follow-up of a nested case-control study
- Post-traumatic stress disorder and antepartum complications: A novel risk factor for gestational diabetes and preeclampsia
- Task force advises routine preeclampsia screening in pregnancy
- The role of aspirin dose on the prevention of preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction: Systematic review and meta-analysis
World Preeclampsia Day
Nearly 76,000 mothers and 500,000 babies worldwide lose their lives to preeclampsia and related hypertensive pregnancy disorders every year (Preeclampsia Foundation).
To raise awareness of preeclampsia as a life-threatening complication of pregnancy, maternal health organizations worldwide are joining forces to host the second annual World Preeclampsia Day on Tuesday, May 22.
