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In the United States, most pregnancy-related deaths can be entirely prevented – and they can occur up to a year after childbirth, according to a new report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Although many people think that the pregnancy ends in the delivery room, the new report highlights the enormous impact it can have on women's bodies for a full year – and, as many mothers would say, much longer.
According to the report, about 700 women die each year of pregnancy or childbirth in the United States. Of these, 31% die during pregnancy, 36% die during childbirth or in the first week after childbirth and 33% die at some point in the first year after childbirth. ;delivery.
And about 60% of these deaths could be avoided.
"Every death reflects a network of missed opportunities," says the CDC, citing lack of access to health care, missed or delayed diagnoses, and forgotten warning signs.
The CDC defines pregnancy-related deaths as those resulting from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth; due to a series of events triggered by a woman's pregnancy; or because of an apparently unrelated condition that has been aggravated by pregnancy.
Serious bleeding and embolism were the leading causes of death during childbirth. The first week after delivery, the leading causes of death were heavy bleeding, high blood pressure, and infection.
The weakened heart muscles caused most deaths that occurred later – at some point in the first year after delivery. Pregnancy and childbirth tax the heart and circulatory system, increasing blood volume up to 50%. Women with known heart problems require special and vigilant care.
The United States is the only developed country in the world where the maternal mortality rate is increasing, especially among women of color – and the lack of postpartum support is a major contributing factor.
"We are the only high-income country in the world without paid maternity leave," Alison Stuebe, a physician in maternal-fetal medicine and medical director of lactation at the University of North Carolina Health Care, told HuffPost. "Moms covered by Medicaid pregnancy are laid off 60 days after having a baby. These are decisions we made as a society. "
A quarter of new American mothers return to work within two weeks of delivery.
And estimates suggest that nearly 40% of women do not participate in any type of postpartum visit to a health care provider.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is working to address the lack of support for women after childbirth, but admits that significant policy changes will be needed to improve the health care provided to recent mothers. Rather than reimbursing expenses for an isolated visit, the group said that postnatal care should be covered as an ongoing process.
"Moms are dying in America because we do not take care of them," Stuebe said.
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