Maternal Mortality & the Hidden Inequality for Black Mothers – Black Girl Nerds

The hard reality is that African American women in the US are dying from preventable pregnancy-related complications.  In fact, Black maternal mortality rates are roughly four times higher than the rate of non-Black women in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control.  

This staggering statistic begs the question, “Why are Black women more likely to die in childbirth?”  This article seeks to answer that question as well as investigate the causes of maternal mortality in Black mothers.

What is the definition of maternal mortality?

Maternal mortality is the result of a woman dying during or after childbirth.  The term also applies to a woman’s death occurring during pregnancy.  According to the World Health Organization, 75% of maternal mortality cases are caused by complications such as severe bleeding after childbirth, infections during or after giving birth, and high blood pressure (known as pre-eclampsia and eclampsia) during pregnancy.  

Other causes may include unsafe abortions and unforeseen complications during childbirth.  Pre-existing medical conditions in mothers such as diabetes or cardiac disease can also lead to premature deaths during pregnancy or childbirth. 

To be clear, women of all races, income, and all walks of life are vulnerable to complications pre, during, and post-pregnancy. However, African American women are one of the largest segments of the population who impact the maternal mortality rate definition. Therefore, they are in the strongest position to reform the medical community in order to render better outcomes and survival rates for Black mothers.  

What are the causes of maternal mortality in Black women?

In an effort to answer the question, “Why are Black women more likely to die in childbirth?” The Population Reference Bureau composed an exhaustive study, curating data from medical organizations across multiple sources.  

Their research concluded that the leading cause of a higher maternal mortality rate in Black mothers is due to preeclampsia and eclampsia, which is pregnancy-related high blood pressure.  The second and third leading causes of Black maternal mortality are cardiomyopathy (heart disease) and excessive hemorrhaging (bleeding). 

How do maternal mortality rates in the US compare and differ across races?

A journal published by the US Department of Health and Human Services uncovered disturbing statistics regarding maternal mortality rate by race.  The publication revealed that the Black maternal mortality rate was 3.5 times higher than among non-Black women.   A more current study conducted in 2020 by the Centers for Disease Control studied 100,000 live births in the US, which confirmed the alarmingly high rate of deaths in Black mothers.  Of these births, 55.3 Black mothers lost their lives during pregnancy.  Alternatively, there were only 19 deaths among white mothers and 18 deaths among Hispanic mothers during pregnancy.