Secular trends in maternal mortality in Sweden from 1750 to 1980.

Mortality statistics have been kept continuously in Sweden since 1750 and reveal that the maternal mortality rate declined from 900 to 6 per 100 000 live births over the period 1750 to 1980. Two-thirds of this decrease occurred during the 19th century and the remainder in the 20th century. In the 18th century, 10% of deaths among women aged between 15 and 49 years were due to complications at parturition, but today this accounts for only 0.2% of deaths in women of this age group. Life-table analysis indicates that 1 out of 29 women in Sweden lost her life in parturition during the 18th century, while today only 1 out of 1000 women dies as a result of complications during pregnancy and parturition.