At Least 40 Million Women Have Long-Term Health Problems After Childbirth Every Year: Lancet Study

Beyond pregnancy: experts call for greater attention to the long-term health challenges of women and girls

 

At least 40 million women have long-term health problems after childbirth every year: Lancet Study.

Every year, at least 40 million women are likely to experience a long-term health problem caused by childbirth, according to a new study published in The Lancet Global Health. 

Part of a special Series on maternal health, the study shows a high burden of postnatal conditions that persist in the months or even years after giving birth. 

These include pain during sexual intercourse (dyspareunia), affecting more than a third (35%) of postpartum women, low back pain (32%), anal incontinence (19%), urinary incontinence (8-31%), anxiety (9-24%), depression (11-17%), perineal pain (11%), fear of childbirth (tokophobia) (6-15%) and secondary infertility (11%).

Other symptoms affecting postnatal women included involuntary urination (8-31 per cent), anxiety (9-24 per cent), depression (11-17 per cent) and perineal pain (11 per cent), which refers to pain in the general region between the anus and the genital organs, the international team of researchers including those from the World Health Organization (WHO) said in their study. 

Effective care throughout pregnancy and childbirth is also a critical preventive factor, they argue, to detect risks and avert complications that can lead to lasting health issues after birth.

“Many postpartum conditions cause considerable suffering in women’s daily life long after birth, both emotionally and physically, and yet they are largely underappreciated, underrecognized, and underreported,” said Dr Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research at WHO. 

“Throughout their lives, and beyond motherhood, women need access to a range of services from health-care providers who listen to their concerns and meet their needs - so they not only survive childbirth but can enjoy good health and quality of life.