Inclusion criteria
Maternal deaths in Belgium, including late maternal deaths, in line with the ICD-10 definition.
WHO | The WHO application of ICD-10 to deaths during pregnancy, childbirth and puerperium: ICD MM
A maternal death is the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and the site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, but not from accidental or incidental causes.
Maternal deaths are subdivided into two groups:
- Direct deaths are those resulting from obstetric complications of the pregnancy state (pregnancy, labour and the puerperium), from interventions, omissions, incorrect treatment, or from a chain of events resulting from any of the above.
- Indirect deaths are those resulting from previous existing disease or disease that developed during pregnancy and which was not due to direct obstetric causes, but which was aggravated by physiologic effects of pregnancy.
A late maternal death is the death of a woman from direct or indirect causes more than 42 days but less than one year after termination of pregnancy.
Exclusion criteria
Maternal deaths from accidental or incidental causes.
e.g. car accident
e.g. another health issue that is not related to or aggravated by the pregnancy