Rate of women dying during pregnancy or shortly after rises by a fifth

New figures from MBRRACE-UK, which is based at the University of Oxford, found that the overall rate of UK maternal death in 2022-24 was 20% higher than in 2009-11 when the Conservatives set an ambition to halve the rate in England.

Blood clots remain the leading cause of death during pregnancy or up to six weeks afterwards, while cardiac disease is the second most common cause.

Suicide is the leading cause of maternal death occurring between six weeks and one year after the end of pregnancy and, as a whole, deaths from psychiatric causes accounted for 33% of maternal deaths in this period, the data showed.

Overall, the rate of direct maternal deaths because of conditions occurring as a result of pregnancy, such as blood clots, bleeding and pre-eclampsia, increased by 52%, while indirect deaths caused by pre-existing conditions remained similar.

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The data showed that inequalities continue to persist, with women aged 35 or older nearly two times more likely to die during or after pregnancy than those aged 25 to 29.

Meanwhile, there was a nearly three-fold difference in maternal mortality rates for black women compared to white women, and Asian women also had a slightly higher risk.

Those women living in the most deprived areas continue to have a death rate twice that of women living in the least deprived areas.

The data also showed that some six women of the 276 total died from Covid complications.

The report said: “Progress towards the government ambition to reduce maternal mortality by 50% between 2010 and 2025 in England can be assessed by comparing the rates of maternal deaths between 2009-11 and 2022-24.

“Over this time, the maternal mortality rate in the UK has increased by 20%.

“The magnitude of this increase is only slightly reduced when deaths due to Covid-19 are excluded.”

The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) said women and babies are being failed by a maternity system under “extreme pressure”.

Clare Livingstone, head of professional policy and practice at the RCM, said: “This is an absolute tragedy for women, babies and the midwives and maternity support workers who care for them.

“Many are avoidable and the lack of progress over more than a decade is unacceptable.

“Maternity services are stretched to capacity. Midwives are working under relentless pressure and that has a real and demonstrable impact on safety, continuity of care and outcomes for women.

“Unacceptable inequalities continue to blight maternity care, with black and Asian women and those living in the most deprived communities facing significantly higher risks.

“These disparities have been known about for years yet meaningful action has been far too slow.

“There has been a failure to invest sufficiently in maternity services over many years.

“It is deeply concerning that £93 million of ringfenced funding intended for maternity improvement has been reprioritised away and could be spent elsewhere in the health system….

“Until maternity services are properly resourced and workforce shortages are addressed, we will continue to see preventable harm.”