Making stillbirths count, making numbers talk - Issues in data collection for stillbirths

J. Frederik Froen*, Sanne J. Gordijn, Hany Abdel-Aleem, Per Bergsjo, Ana Betran, Charles W. Duke, Vincent Fauveau, Vicki Flenady, Sven Gudmund Hinderaker, G. Justus Hofmeyr, Abdul Hakeem Jokhio, Joy Lawn, Pisake Lumbiganon, Mario Merialdi, Robert Pattinson, Anuraj Shankar

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

    80 Citations (Scopus)
    306 Downloads (Pure)

    Abstract

    Background: Stillbirths need to count. They constitute the majority of the world's perinatal deaths and yet, they are largely invisible. Simply counting stillbirths is only the first step in analysis and prevention. From a public health perspective, there is a need for information on timing and circumstances of death, associated conditions and underlying causes, and availability and quality of care. This information will guide efforts to prevent stillbirths and improve quality of care.

    Discussion: In this report, we assess how different definitions and limits in registration affect data capture, and we discuss the specific challenges of stillbirth registration, with emphasis on implementation. We identify what data need to be captured, we suggest a dataset to cover core needs in registration and analysis of the different categories of stillbirths with causes and quality indicators, and we illustrate the experience in stillbirth registration from different cultural settings. Finally, we point out gaps that need attention in the International Classification of Diseases and review the qualities of alternative systems that have been tested in low- and middle-income settings.

    Summary: Obtaining high-quality data will require consistent definitions for stillbirths, systematic population-based registration, better tools for surveys and verbal autopsies, capacity building and training in procedures to identify causes of death, locally adapted quality indicators, improved classification systems, and effective registration and reporting systems.

    Original languageEnglish
    Article number58
    Number of pages17
    JournalBMC Pregnancy and Childbirth
    Volume9
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2009

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