Obstetric characteristics in parturient women with newborns dying during the first 24 hours of life in Maputo.

Abstract

A case-control study of parturient women with newborns dying during the first 24 hours of life was undertaken at the Maputo Central Hospital. A total of 36 such parturients were recruited on a consecutive basis. For each case woman two referent women randomly selected among parturients with newborns surviving the first 24 hours of life were recruited. Parturients suffering neonatal loss had, in relation to their referents, a similar number of previous pregnancies but significantly fewer surviving children, lower average gestational length, lower average fundal height at birth, longer duration of membrane rupture, fewer normal, cephalic vaginal deliveries, and much lower birthweight. Parturient women suffering from early neonatal loss in this setting represent a more vulnerable segment of the population than their referents. Their newborns suffer from a shorter gestational length and from a more prolonged duration of membrane rupture than newborns from referents.