International Journal of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology

Introduction: The objectives of the study were to determine the perinatal mortality rate, describe the sociodemographic characteristics of the victimized mothers and identify the risk factors associated with perinatal mortality at the maternity ward of the said center.
Methods: This was a one-year prospective descriptive and analytical case-control study (from ¹ June 2023 to May 31, 2024). It concerned all deaths of fetuses at least 22 weeks pregnant or weighing at least 500g with an Apgar score of zero at the first or fifth minute, newborns who died during the first seven days of life, women who gave birth and partners who agreed to participate in the study.
Results: The perinatal mortality rate at the site was 44.2 per 1,000. It was prevalent among patients in the 18-34 age group, housewives, married and not in school.
Associated risk factors were maternal age, medical history (diabetes, urogenital infection), parity, mode of admission, evacuation support, origin, and level of education, content of ANC, route of delivery and appearance of amniotic fluid.
HBP and its complications, respiratory distress and prematurity were the most common causes.
Conclusion: Reducing perinatal mortality would require good prenatal monitoring, monitoring of labor and adequate care of sick newborns.