TITLE:
Characteristics and Causes of Maternal Deaths at the Pikine National Hospital Center in the Dakar Suburbs, Senegal: A Five-Year Study (From January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2023)
AUTHORS:
Khalifa Ababacar Gueye, Mouhamet Sene, Mouhamadou Nazir Sylla, Youssoupha Toure, Moussa Diallo, Abdoul Aziz Diouf, Alassane Diouf
KEYWORDS:
Maternal Mortality, Determinants, Preeclampsia, Postpartum Hemorrhage, Obstetric Referral, Senegal
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,
Vol.16 No.10,
October
19,
2026
ABSTRACT: Background: Maternal mortality remains a major public health problem, particularly in resource-limited countries. Despite the progress achieved, hypertensive and hemorrhagic complications continue to account for a substantial proportion of maternal deaths. This study aimed to analyze the determinants, causes, and circumstances of maternal deaths recorded at Pikine National Hospital, a referral hospital in the suburbs of Dakar. Methods: We conducted a retrospective descriptive and analytical study including all maternal deaths that occurred between January 1, 2019, and December 31, 2023, in the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at Pikine National Hospital. Data were collected from medical records, hospital admission registers, operating room registers, and anesthesia and intensive care records. Sociodemographic, obstetric, clinical, and therapeutic variables, as well as causes of death, were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results: During the study period, 125 maternal deaths were recorded among 28,197 live births, corresponding to a maternal mortality ratio of 443.3 per 100,000 live births. The mean age of the patients was 31 ± 6 years. Most were multiparous (73.6%), had been referred from another health facility (74.4%), and had attended fewer than four antenatal care visits (84.8%). The leading underlying causes were preeclampsia (38.4%) and postpartum hemorrhage (22.4%). The leading immediate causes were hemorrhagic shock (39.2%), HELLP syndrome (20.0%), and eclampsia (15.2%). Direct obstetric causes accounted for 84.0% of deaths.