TITLE:
What Emerges from the Analysis of Maternal Deaths at the Gyneco-Obstetric and Paediatric Hospital in Yaoundé?
AUTHORS:
Pascale Mpono Emenguele, Nelssa Kuete Fouomekong, Junie Annick Metogo Ntsama, Vanina Ngono Akam, Christiane Nsahlai, Isidore Tompeen, Serge Nyada, Véronique Mboua Batoum, Wilfried Loïc Tatsipie, Xavier Junior Ayissi Ngono, Esther Ngo Um Meka
KEYWORDS:
Maternal Mortality, Proportion, Review, Cause, Etiology
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
Vol.15 No.1,
January
27,
2025
ABSTRACT: Background: Maternal mortality remains a major public health problem worldwide. Objectives: Our study aims to present the results of an analysis of reviews of maternal deaths at HGOPY. Methodology: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study with retrospective data collection from archived records and reviewed maternal death reports. Our study lasted 8 months, from October 1, 2023 to May 31, 2024. The study covered maternal death files at the HGOPY over an 8-year period, from 1st of January 2016 to the 31st of December 2023. Data were processed and analyzed using Statitical Paquage for Social Science (SPSS) version 26.0. Results: We counted a total of 160 maternal deaths, of which 97 had been reviewed. We excluded 61 deceased women reviewed and retained 33. We recorded a cumulative total of 160 maternal deaths and 19,651 live births. The peak in the proportion of maternal deaths at the Yaoundé Gynaeco-Obstetric and Paediatric Hospital was in 2021, with a proportion of 0.013. No maternal deaths had been reviewed between 2016 to 2017. Most deaths (64%) occurred between 37 and 40 weeks. The majority (30.5%) were aged between 30 and 35. The data show that 80.6% of maternal deaths were due to direct obstetric causes, while 19.4% were due to indirect causes. Most deaths (69.4%) were preventable. Only 8.3% were not preventable. Conclusion: Concerted efforts must be made to adapt maternal death prevention and management strategies to local contexts in order to significantly reduce these alarming figures.