Maternal Mortality: Trends, Impact and Reduction Efforts

Every year in the United States, hundreds of women die of complications related to pregnancy and childbirth. According to CDC data, racial/ethnic disparities exist with regard to these deaths. For example, non-Hispanic black women were more than three times as likely to die as non-Hispanic white women, and non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native women were more than two times as likely to die as non-Hispanic white women. This book describes trends in pregnancy-related deaths in the United States, including trends in causes and timing of these deaths, and the efforts focused on reducing pregnancy-related deaths.