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Violent deaths: the hidden face of maternal mortality

  1. Ana Carla Granja1,*,
  2. Eugenio Zacarias2,
  3. Staffan Bergström3

Article first published online: 22 DEC 2003

DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2002.01082.x

Issue

BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology

BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology

Volume 109, Issue 1, pages 5–8, January 2002

Additional Information

How to Cite

Granja, A. C., Zacarias, E. and Bergström, S. (2002), Violent deaths: the hidden face of maternal mortality. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 109: 5–8. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2002.01082.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Ministry of Health, Maputo, Mozambique

  2. 2

    Forensic Department, Faculty of Medicine, Maputo, Mozambique

  3. 3

    Division of International Health (IHCAR), Department of Public Health Sciences, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden

**Dr A.C. Granja, Calcada Conde de Tomar, n° 11-3°-A, 1497-710 Cruz QuebradaPortugal

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 22 DEC 2003
  2. Article first published online: 22 DEC 2003
  3. Accepted 14 August 2001

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Objective To review pregnancy-related deaths due to injuries, to identify the characteristics of these women and to compare the magnitude of injury-related maternal deaths to that of other causes of maternal death

Design A retrospective study was performed during a five-year period (1991–1995), covering deaths from injuries, including suicide, homicide and accidents in Maputo, Mozambique

Setting Department of Forensic Medicine at the Maputo Central Hospital, Mozambique

Population The pregnant or recently pregnant (post-abortion and postpartum) population of Maputo city, the national capital of Mozambique. Twenty-seven cases of pregnancy-related deaths caused by injuries were identified

Main outcome measures Proportion of deaths due to homicide, suicide, and accidents in pregnant women or within 42 days after termination of pregnancy

Results Ten cases were due to alleged homicide, nine to alleged suicide and six to alleged accident. Fifty-nine percent (16/27) of women suffering an injury-related maternal death were younger than 25 years of age. Eighty-five percent of pregnancies were less than 28 weeks of gestational age. The magnitude of the problem of violence-related maternal deaths compares with the magnitude of pregnancy-induced hypertension as the fourth cause of maternal death at Maputo Central Hospital

Conclusion The contribution of violence-related deaths to maternal mortality is significant and must not be neglected.

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