Having a child is a wonderful time in life, but many parents worry about maternal death and birth complications. The good news is there was a significant drop in maternal death rates.
The bad news is a significant increase in birth complications over the last few years. A few factors increase this risk.
Race
One of the most surprising factors is that race impacts birth and postpartum complications. With insurance and hospital care being equal, race seems to be a factor. The Asian, Hispanic and Black races seem more likely to suffer from birth and postpartum complications.
Preexisting conditions
Although not surprising, the rise of untreated preexisting conditions causing birth and postpartum complications is troubling. These conditions include:
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Infectious diseases (HIV, hepatitis etc.)
- Obesity
- Respiratory conditions
- Nutritional disorders
Many more preexisting conditions can cause birth and postpartum complications. Doctors do not discover these conditions unless they test for them.
Drug and alcohol use
Various drugs can affect fertility in men and women, but others also affect pregnancy loss rates and congenital disabilities. Cytotoxic medications, illegal drugs and alcohol all increase these incidents.
Age
In recent years more people are having children much later than ever before. Although this does not become a problem when the pregnancies occur in the early thirties, as a woman ages, the risks of birth complications increase significantly per year.
Medical mistakes
Medical mistakes can occur before, during and after the delivery. These mistakes frequently result in postpartum and birth complications. Doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other medical professionals are responsible for these mistakes. It could be something as simple as a misread test or mismanaged medication.
Birth complications are on the rise. It is important to know why and how to ensure they do not continue to increase.