A return to maternal mortality studies: a necessary effort.

This report reviews the experience of the Santa Clara County Maternal Mortality Study Committee, which continued its local activity after the termination of California state-supported study groups in 1970. A study of 36 maternal deaths among approximately 262,000 live births was compiled over a 13-year period, between 1971 and 1983, in a population group representative of much of California. Although based on a small population sample, the results indicate an imperative need for such reviews to improve the quality of clinical care and to develop significant statistical information on the incidence and causes of maternal mortality. The historical development of study committees throughout the United States illustrates the necessity of standardized definitions and uniform methodology among study groups in all states and territories. A nationwide study is proposed to obtain a broad-based, cumulative maternal mortality series, directed toward the eventual elimination of preventable maternal deaths. The current effort by a special interest group in the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is commended for beginning this task.