no decline in stillbirth
rates
A new report from the Confidential Enquiry into Maternal and
Child Health (CEMACH) has revealed (25 April 2007) that stillbirth
rates in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have failed to decline
since the early 1990s despite medical advances.
Stillbirths are deaths of unborn babies after the 20th week of
pregnancy. Women under 20 and over 40 have the highest rates of
stillbirth at 6.6 and 7.2 per 1,000 births respectively.
CEMACH found that there were 3,676 stillbirths in 2005, with
approximately one third of these occurring in pregnancies that had
run their full term.
The report shows that just over one in 200 pregnancies ends in
stillbirth, and one in 300 babies dies before they are four weeks
old.
According to the report, stillbirths were in steady decline from
the 1950s to the 1990s, but since the early 1990s the rate has held
level in single child pregnancies.
Commenting on the findings, Richard Congdon, chief executive of
CEMACH, said: "The rapid improvement in recent years in the
survival prospects of babies who have been born very prematurely is
highly welcome, but unfortunately there seem to be deep-seated
reasons why we are not seeing the same improvement in the number of
stillbirths. We believe this needs attention."
Jim Dornan, vice president of the Royal College of Obstetricians
and Gynaecologists, also commented: "The results of the latest
CEMACH study of perinatal mortality shows that the occurrence of
stillbirth is still a major and tragic problem in this
country.”
Researchers say that the quality of research into the causes of
stillbirth has been hampered by the decline in post mortem
examinations following stillbirths.
While many stillbirths occur naturally, for example, as a result
of congenital malformation, tragically, there are also many that
could have been prevented. At Blake Lapthorn Tarlo Lyons, our
specialist lawyers deal with a significant number of cases each
year where stillbirth occurs as a result of hospital negligence. In
dealing with these difficult and tragic cases, we have been witness
to the same medical errors being made again and again over the last
15 years.
Our experienced medical and legal team includes legal
specialists and former medical professionals, including a former
doctor, a former nurse and a former midwife.
Patricia Wakeford, formerly a midwife now with Blake Lapthorn
Tarlo Lyons comments: “The hours and days after parents experience
stillbirth leave them feeling overwhelmed and shocked, often with
unanswered questions as to the reasons behind the tragic loss of
their baby. This can be all the more difficult where the stillbirth
could have been prevented by the medical staff involved. At Blake
Lapthorn Tarlo Lyons, we appreciate and understand the grief and
sense of bereavement these parents experience and we provide
sensitive, clear advice and involvement”.
Blake Lapthorn Tarlo Lyons is happy to be one of the main
sponsors of Baby Lifeline, a charity developing a risk management
training programme for NHS Trusts to improve clinical governance
and risk management in obstetric care.
For further information please contact Alison McClure in the
Clinical Negligence team on 023 8085 7345 or email alison.mcclure@bllaw.co.uk
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