B irth is usually a time of celebration, when we recognise the miracle of life as a child is brought into the world. In Britain, childbirth used to be a much more fraught experience, with a high risk of death for mother and baby. But scientific progress and modern medicine have reduced infant deaths for every 1,000 live births from 31.
7 in 1950 to just four by 2020. Deaths are relatively higher than Finland’s and Japan’s infant mortality rates, of about two for every 1,000, but much lower than Afghanistan at 103.1.
Once a woman and her baby survive childbirth, several weeks of follow-up is routine in many countries to ensure that any urgent health issues are resolved. This six- to eight-week period is called postnatal care, as women recover from their labour and delivery, especially if they’ve had a C-section or episiotomy. But what happens to new mothers after that handful of weeks? They usually disappear from the health system and are left on their own to cope with recovery.
This year, a new scientific review was published in Lancet Global Health, which estimated the extent of long-term postpartum conditions through bringing together a number of international studies. The authors estimate that more than a third of women who give birth in a given year struggle with long-term health complications – that’s at least 40 million women globally. Even for births without immediate complications, issues can arise later on, often after the heath system has stopped monitoring.
