Perinatal morbidity and mortality due to preterm deliveries in a referral hospital, in rural India: a cross sectional study

Background: Preterm birth is the most significant problem in current obstetric practice and according to the World Health Organization is the direct cause accounting for 24% of neonatal deaths. Prevalence of preterm birth range between 7-16% and are similar worldwide. There is scarcity of data on preterm birth in India despite having highest number of births and neonatal deaths in the world. The available data indicate that 15% of all neonatal deaths are caused by prematurity and its complication. Methods: A cross sectional study was done in order to find out incidence of preterm labour and resultant mortality and morbidity associated with preterm deliveries. Over a period of 3 years from 01.01.2008 to 31.12.2010, 3843 pregnant mothers delivered in rural MIMER Medical College, Pune out of which there were 27 cases of twins (24 preterm twins and 3 term twins) and 2 cases of triplets (preterm). Out of 3874 newborns, 476(12.2%) were preterm after excluding the babies with lethal congenital anomalies. 448 mothers (24 preterm twins and 2 preterm triplets) giving birth to 476 preterm babies excluding the lethal congenital malformations were studied. Results: The overall perinatal mortality amongst preterm births for the 3 years were 426.4/ 1000 preterm birth. Preterm deliveries contributed to 61.50 % of perinatal deaths. Out of 476 preterm babies 83 were stillborn and 120 had early neonatal deaths; thus giving a perinatal mortality rate of 426.4 per thousand preterm births. The main cause of perinatal morbidity was LBW, followed by RDS, septicemia, IUGR and birth asphyxia. The mortality of babies was strongly associated with RDS (18.32%), septicaemia (22.5%), extreme prematurity (14.16%) and birth asphyxia (26%). Conclusion: This manuscript describes the design, methodology used and the three years result of this cross sectional study to analyze and audit the perinatal mortality and morbidity due to preterm deliveries in a tertiary care teaching hospital of rural area of Maharashtra. [Int J Reprod Contracept Obstet Gynecol 2013; 2(4.000): 555-561]