Editing Childbirth (section)

==Mortality==
===Maternal mortality===
{{main|Maternal mortality}}
[[File:Share of women that are expected to die from pregnancy-related causes, OWID.svg|thumb|Share of women that are expected to die from pregnancy-related causes]]

Causes for maternal mortality range from [[Postpartum bleeding|severe bleeding]] to [[Obstructed labour#Prognosis|obstructed labour]],<ref name="GDB2013">{{cite journal|date=January 2015|title=Global, regional, and national age-sex specific all-cause and cause-specific mortality for 240 causes of death, 1990–2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013|journal=Lancet|volume=385|issue=9963|pages=117–71|doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(14)61682-2|pmc=4340604|pmid=25530442 |last1=Murray |first1=Christopher JL |last2=Lopez |first2=Alan D |last3=Vos |first3=Theo|collaboration=GBD 2013 Mortality and Causes of Death Collaborators }}</ref> for which there are highly effective interventions.

[[File:810 women die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, 94% occur in low and lower middle-income countries.png|thumb|upright=1.3|810 women die every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. 94% occur in low and lower middle-income countries.]]

In 2008 at least seven million mothers experienced serious health problems while 50 million more had adverse health consequences after childbirth.

The [[United Nations Population Fund]] estimated that 303,000&nbsp;women died of pregnancy or childbirth related causes in 2015.<ref name="unfpa.org">{{cite web|title=Maternal health|url=http://www.unfpa.org/maternal-health|access-date=29 January 2017|publisher=United Nations Population Fund|archive-date=29 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129122355/https://www.unfpa.org/maternal-health|url-status=live}}</ref> 

Additionally [[postpartum infections]], most often transmitted by the dirty hands and tools of doctors,<ref name=":0" /> used to be one of the main causes of maternal mortality until [[Germ theory of disease|germ theory]] was accepted in the mid-1800s and adopted thereafter. Before that it was assumed that puerperal fever was caused by a variety of sources, including the leakage of breast milk into the body and anxiety. Still, home births facilitated by trained midwives produced the best outcomes from 1880 to 1930 in the US and Europe, whereas physician-facilitated hospital births produced the worst. When [[antibiotics]] were discovered in the 1930s, rates of puerperal fever started to decrease significantly.<ref name=":2">{{cite journal |vauthors=Loudon I |date=July 2000 |title=Maternal mortality in the past and its relevance to developing countries today |journal=The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition |volume=72 |issue=1 Suppl |pages=241S–246S |doi=10.1093/ajcn/72.1.241S |pmid=10871589 |doi-access=free}}</ref> 

The change in trend of maternal mortality can be attributed with the widespread use of antibiotics along with the progression of medical technology, more extensive physician training, and less medical interference with normal deliveries.<ref name=":2" />

The [[World Health Organization]] (WHO) has urged midwife training to strengthen maternal and newborn health services. To support the upgrading of midwifery skills the WHO established a midwife training programme, Action for Safe Motherhood.<ref name=WHO2008Ed/>

There was a 44% decline in the maternal death rate between 1990 and 2015. However, 830 women died every day in 2015 from causes related to pregnancy or childbirth and for every woman who dies, 20 or 30 encounter injuries, infections or disabilities. Most of these deaths and injuries are preventable.<ref>{{cite web|title=Maternal health|url=http://www.unfpa.org/maternal-health|website=United Nations Population Fund|access-date=24 April 2018|archive-date=29 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129122355/https://www.unfpa.org/maternal-health|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="vanlerberghe">{{cite book |vauthors= Van Lerberghe W, De Brouwere V |chapter= Of Blind Alleys and Things That Have Worked: History's Lessons on Reducing Maternal Mortality |veditors= De Brouwere V, Van Lerberghe W |title= Safe Motherhood Strategies: A Review of the Evidence |location= Antwerp |publisher= ITG Press |year= 2001 |isbn= 978-90-76070-19-3 |chapter-url= http://dspace.itg.be/bitstream/10390/1515/1/shsop17.pdf#page=15 |series= Studies in Health Services Organisation and Policy |volume= 17 |pages= 7–33 |quote= Where nothing effective is done to avert maternal death, "natural" mortality is probably of the order of magnitude of 1,500/100,000. |access-date= 29 August 2013 |archive-date= 28 August 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210828031201/http://dspace.itg.be/bitstream/handle/10390/1515/shsop17.pdf;jsessionid=01CB3701C881CA8BEF7ACD2A307311D7?sequence=1#page=15 |url-status= dead }}</ref> In the decades since 1990 the global maternal mortality ratio has fallen from 385&nbsp;maternal deaths per 100,000&nbsp;live births in 1990 to 216&nbsp;deaths per 100,000&nbsp;live births in 2015, and it was reported in 2017 that many countries had halved their maternal death rates in the last 10&nbsp;years,<ref name="unfpa.org" /> as women have gained access to [[family planning]] and skilled [[birth attendant]]s with backup emergency obstetric care.

====United States====
{{Main articles|Maternal mortality in the United States|Black maternal mortality in the United States}}
Since the US began recording childbirth statistics in 1915, the US has had historically poor maternal mortality rates in comparison to other developed countries.

The rising maternal death rate in the US is of concern. In 1990 the US ranked 12th of the 14 developed countries that were analysed.  However, since that time the rates of every country have steadily continued to improve while the US rate has spiked dramatically.  While every other developed nation of the 14 analysed in 1990 shows a 2017 death rate of less than 10 deaths per every 100,000 live births, the US rate has risen to 26.4. By comparison, the United Kingdom ranks second highest at 9.2 and Finland is the safest at 3.8.<ref>{{cite web|title=U.S. Has The Worst Rate Of Maternal Deaths In The Developed World|url=https://www.npr.org/2017/05/12/528098789/u-s-has-the-worst-rate-of-maternal-deaths-in-the-developed-world|website=NPR|date=12 May 2017|access-date=25 April 2018|last1=Propublica|first1=Nina Martin|last2=Montagne|first2=Renee|archive-date=24 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180424221005/https://www.npr.org/2017/05/12/528098789/u-s-has-the-worst-rate-of-maternal-deaths-in-the-developed-world|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2022, the WHO reported that the US had the highest maternal death rate of any developed nation while other nations continued to experience declines.  The death rate of black women has also continued to climb with a 2020 CDC report showing the maternal death rate at 55.3 deaths per 100,000 live births – 2.9 times the rate for white women.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Howard |first1=Jacqueline |title=US sees continued rise in maternal deaths – and ongoing inequities, CDC report shows |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/23/health/maternal-deaths-increase-us-report/index.html |website=CNN |date=23 February 2022 |access-date=13 February 2023 |archive-date=14 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214021006/https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/23/health/maternal-deaths-increase-us-report/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2023, a study reported that deaths among Native American women were even higher, at 3.5 times the rate for White women. The report attributed the high rate in part to the fact that Native American women are cared for under a poorly funded Federal Health Care System that is so stretched that the average monthly visit lasts only from three to seven minutes. Such a short visit allows neither time for performing an adequate health assessment nor time for the patient to discuss any problems she may be experiencing.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sharp rise in deaths among pregnant women and new mothers |url=https://video.azpbs.org/video/at-risk-1676327693/ |website=PBS Newshour |access-date=13 February 2023 |archive-date=14 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214030105/https://video.azpbs.org/video/at-risk-1676327693/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Infant mortality===
{{Main|Neonatal death}}Looking at 168 countries around the world, a 2015 [[Save the Children]]'s report found that each day about 8,000 newborns die during the first month of life. Worldwide, more than 1 million babies die during their first day even though simple measures such as antibiotics, hand-held breathing masks and other simple interventions could prevent the deaths of 70% of infants.<ref name=":17">{{cite web |last1=Castillo |first1=Michelle |date=7 May 2013 |title=U.S. has highest first-day infant mortality out of industrialized world, group reports |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-has-highest-first-day-infant-mortality-out-of-industrialized-world-group-reports/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214164007/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-has-highest-first-day-infant-mortality-out-of-industrialized-world-group-reports/ |archive-date=14 February 2023 |access-date=14 February 2023 |website=CBS News}}</ref>

==== United States ====
The United States had the highest first-day infant death rate of all the industrialised nations in the world.  In the US, each year about 11,300 newborns die within 24 hours of their birth, 50% more first-day deaths than all other industrialised countries combined.<ref name=":17" />

Compared to other developed nations, the United States also has high infant mortality rates.  The [[Trust for America's Health]] reports that as of 2011, about one-third of American births have some complications; many are directly related to the mother's health including increasing rates of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and physical inactivity.  The [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention|U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] (CDC) has led an initiative to improve woman's health previous to conception in an effort to improve both neonatal and maternal death rates.<ref>{{cite web |title= Healthy Women, Healthy Babies: How health reform can improve the health of women and babies in America |url= http://healthyamericans.org/assets/files/TFAH%202011HealthyBabiesBrief.pdf | vauthors = Levi J, Kohn D, Johnson K |publisher= [[Trust for America's Health]] |location= Washington, D.C. |date= June 2011 |access-date= 29 August 2013 |url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120624230140/http://healthyamericans.org/assets/files/TFAH%202011HealthyBabiesBrief.pdf |archive-date= 24 June 2012 }}</ref>