Age-Specific Maternal Mortality Ratio

Vladimir Canudas-Romo, Johns Hopkins University
Linnea Zimmerman, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Despite an estimated decline in the number of maternal deaths by approximately 35% since 1990, maternal mortality remains one of the most intractable public health problems today. The Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) is the most common indicator of maternal risk, which is an estimate of obstetric risk per birth. In general, MMR is estimated as a summary measure across all ages and parities. The objective of this paper is to estimate age- and parity-specific MMRs to estimate differences in obstetric risk across ages and parities. Special DHS surveys, focusing specifically on maternal health, have been conducted in Ghana and Bangladesh. Preliminary results from the latter country are presented here and show the clear advantage of disentangling MMR by its age and parity components.