Open AccessPerinatal death due to abruptio placentae in an african city
Author(s) -
Naeye Richard L.,
Tafari Nebiat,
Marboe Charles C.
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
acta obstetricia et gynecologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.401
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1600-0412
pISSN - 0001-6349
DOI - 10.3109/00016347909154910
Subject(s) - medicine , malnutrition , pregnancy , obstetrics , poverty , pediatrics , genetics , economics , biology , economic growth
. Abruptio placentae was a common cause of perinatal death in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 1974–1975 with a frequency of 5.5/1000 births. The disorder had its peak frequency at term. No abnormalities were found in the placentas to explain the placental abruptions but there were other clues to their genesis. There was a strong association of the fatal abruptions with severe poverty in the mothers. These poor mothers were both undernourished and malnourished during pregnancy. Their fetuses and neonates who died had multiple evidences of undernutrition including a relative undergrowth of adrenals, spleens and livers and a relative acceleration of lung maturation. These findings support observations in more prosperous nations that poor nutrition of the gravida may have an important role in the genesis of abruptio placentae.