ABSTRACT

Almost 1 million women die annually from complications of pregnancy and childbirth1. The World Health Organization and United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund estimate that less than 1% of maternal deaths occur in developed countries, in contrast to the vast majority which occur in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa (almost 90%) and other developing countries (10%)1. This disproportion is exemplified by the estimated lifetime risk of maternal mortality (probability of maternal death faced by an average woman over her entire reproductive lifespan) of 1 in 48 in developing countries compared with 1 in 1800 in developed regions1. The single most important intervention to prevent these deaths is appropriate perinatal care1.