Background
Every year, an estimated 529,000 women die from complications of pregnancy and childbirth, 99% of these deaths occur in developing countries. Worldwide, for every 100,000 live births, about 440 women die. In some industrialized countries such as the U.S, this is 11 deaths for every 100,000 live babies born, American women have a lifetime risk of 1 in 4800 of dying from childbirth related complications. However, in some countries, such as Afghanistan for example, up to 1,800 women die for every 100,000 live births, Afghan women have a 1 in 8 lifetime risk of maternal death.
For every woman who dies, there are 30 women who suffer a disability as a result of pregnancy or childbirth related complications (called a maternal morbidity). These can be serious, lifelong ailments which compromise a women's health, productivity, quality of life, family health and her ability to participate in community life. If a mother dies after childbirth, the likelihood of the newborn dying is also much greater. Maternal death and disability means hardships and loss of productivity for families, communities and nations. This is of such great concern that in 2000, world leaders decided that improving maternal health should be one of the 8 Millennium Development Goals for the international community.
The leading cause of maternal mortality (deaths from pregnancy and childbirth related complications) is obstetric hemorrhage in which a woman bleeds heavily, most often immediately after giving birth. A woman dies every 4 minutes from this kind of complication . A woman can bleed to death in two hours or less, and in rural areas, where hospitals may be days away, this leaves little hope for women suffering from hemorrhage. Also, in places that have limited resources, clinics and hospitals might not have the staff or supplies needed to save a women's life. Women die waiting for the treatment they need.
A hemorrhaging woman being taken to hospital in a local ambulance in Zambia.
There are some emerging technologies which are currently being researched and implemented that seek to prevent these unnecessary deaths. One of these is the LifeWrap which is a low-technology, first-aid device that can be placed on women who are hemorrhaging. This device decreases blood loss, recovers women from shock and keeps them alive while they are traveling to a hospital or awaiting treatment.
