Maternal Death

Maternal death is defined by the World Health Organization as the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, but not from accidental or incidental causes. A maternal death is one for which the certifying physician has designated a maternal condition as the underlying cause of death. Maternal conditions are those assigned to pregnancy, childbirth, and the puerperium, ICD–10 codes A34, O00–O95, O98–O99 (see table V). Changes have been made in the classification and coding of maternal deaths between ICD–9 and ICD–10, effective with mortality data for 1999. ICD–10 changes pertain to indirect maternal causes and timing of death relative to pregnancy. If only indirect maternal causes of death (that is, a previously existing disease or a disease that developed during pregnancy which was not caused by direct obstetric causes but was aggravated by physiologic effects of pregnancy) are reported in Part I of the death certificate and pregnancy is reported in either Part I or Part II, ICD–10 classifies this as a maternal death. ICD–9 only classified the death as maternal if pregnancy was reported in Part I. Some State death certificates include a separate question regarding pregnancy status. A positive response to the question is interpreted as ‘‘pregnant’’ being reported in Part II of the cause-of-death section of the death certificate. If the medical certifier did not specify when death occurred relative to the pregnancy, it is assumed that the pregnancy terminated 42 days or less prior to death. Under ICD–10 a new category has been added for deaths from maternal causes that occurred more than 42 days after delivery or termination of pregnancy (O96–O97). In 1999 there were 15 such deaths and in 2000, there were 8.

SOURCE: Health, United States

Related Links
Maternal Mortality Rate

This page last reviewed January 11, 2007