Black women four times more likely to die in childbirth

Black women are more than four times more likely to die in pregnancy or childbirth than white women in the UK, a review of 2017-2019 deaths shows.

The MBRRACE-UK report found women from Asian backgrounds are almost twice as likely to die as white women.

Some 495 individuals died during pregnancy or up to a year after birth, out of 2,173,810 having a child.

The charity Birthrights is concerned that overall "this bleak picture has not changed in over a decade".

University of Oxford researchers say for the vast majority of people, pregnancy remains very safe in the UK. But despite slight decreases in the maternal death rate in recent years, there have been no significant improvements to these rates since the 2010 to 2012 period.

Their current report shows heart disease, epilepsy and stroke continue to be the most common causes of death. And they say in some 37% of cases, improvements in care may have made a difference to the outcome.

Lead researcher, Prof Marian Knight, said: "Pregnant women get inequitable care for several reasons.

"Healthcare professionals often attribute their symptoms to pregnancy alone and they do not always end up getting the treatment they need because people can be incorrectly concerned about giving them medication.

"On top of that is the unconscious bias that black and Asian women can experience. It all adds up.

"We know from other studies that the disparity in death rates cannot be fully explained by socio-economic factors and other medical conditions for example. We need to look for other reasons."

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Source: BBC News, 11 November 2021