Beyond pregnancy - The neglected burden of mortality in young women of reproductive age in Bangladesh: A prospective cohort study

A. B. Labrique, S. S. Sikder, L. Wu, M. Rashid, H. Ali, B. Ullah, A. A. Shamim, S. Mehra, R. Klemm, H. Banu, K. P. West, P. Christian

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objective To describe proportionate mortality and causes of death unrelated to pregnancy. Design Prospective cohort study. Setting Rural northwest Bangladesh. Population A cohort of 133 617 married women of reproductive age. Methods Verbal autopsies were conducted for women who died whilst under surveillance in the cohort trial. Physician-assigned causes of death based on verbal autopsies were used to categorise deaths. Main outcome measures The proportion of deaths due to non-communicable diseases, infectious diseases, injury or pregnancy. Results Of the 1107 deaths occurring among women between 2001 and 2007, 48% were attributed to non-communicable diseases, 22% to pregnancy, 17% to infections, 9% to injury and 4% to other causes. Conclusions Although focus on pregnancy-related mortality remains important, more attention is warranted on non-communicable diseases among women of reproductive age.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1085-1089
Number of pages5
JournalBJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
Volume120
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2013

Keywords

  • Bangladesh
  • South Asia
  • low-income settings
  • non-communicable disease
  • reproductive age
  • verbal autopsy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Obstetrics and Gynecology

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