Analysis of the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal mortality trends, 2011-2021.
Mariana Vitor Peppe, Fernanda Bruzadelli Paulino da Costa, Livia Sanches Pedrilio and 3 others
PMID 41191696WHAT IT FOUND
Maternal deaths in São Paulo rose during the pandemic, reaching 87.02 per 100,000 live births in 2021.
Indirect causes became predominant, while direct obstetric deaths did not rise.
Key findings
01The total maternal mortality ratio in São Paulo reached 87.02 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2021, the highest value in the series.
02Indirect maternal deaths showed a 70.5% annual growth from 2019 to 2021.
03Direct maternal deaths did not show an upward trend from 2017 to 2021; the trend was stationary.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Because the data are aggregated, the study cannot say which individual women were exposed to which care or why each death occurred. It compares time periods without individual-level exposure data, so it cannot prove that the pandemic caused the trend. Some regional health departments had years with no maternal deaths, so individual regional models were not possible. The findings are from São Paulo, so they may not apply to places with different maternity care systems.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the rise in maternal deaths as proof that the pandemic alone caused it or that a specific care model could have prevented it. The study uses aggregate records and cannot link individual deaths to individual exposures, treatments or services.