During the five-year period 1931-35, 176 women died from sepsis following abortion. In the same period there were only 70 deaths from sepsis following full-time child-birth. Some of the distressing repercussions from these tragedies have been revealed in the annual report of the Director-General of Health, 1936, which shows that in that period 338 children were left motherless by the death of 109 married women.
Another serious fact is that, while, owing to the strenuous efforts of those engaged in the direction and practice of midwifery, there has been a most gratifying fall in deaths from post-confinement sepsis from 2.02 per 1,000 live births in 1927 to 0.4 per 1,000 in 1935, deaths from post-abortion sepsis in the same period rose from 0.50 per 1,000 live births in 1927 to 1.73 per 1,000 in 1934, with a fall to 1 per 1,000 in 1935. These figures are illustrated by the following graph and accompanying table:—
Maternal Mortality.
Showing the number of deaths and the death-rate per 1,000 live births from certain causes, 1927 to 1935.
| 1927. | 1928. | 1929. | 1930. | 1931. | 1932. | 1933. | 1934. | 1935. | |
| Maternal mortality,including septic abortion— | |||||||||
| Number | 137 | 134 | 129 | 136 | 127 | 101 | 108 | 118 | 101 |
| Rate | 4·91 | 4·93 | 4·82 | 5·08 | 4·77 | 4·08 | 4·44 | 4·85 | 4·21 |
| Maternal mortality,excludingseptic abortion— | |||||||||
| Number | 123 | 120 | 110 | 106 | 98 | 75 | 82 | 76 | 78 |
| Rate | 4·41 | 4·42 | 4·11 | 3·96 | 3·68 | 3·02 | 3·37 | 3·12 | 3·25 |
| Puerperal septicæmia— | |||||||||
| Number | 56 | 42 | 30 | 27 | 18 | 13 | 14 | 17 | 8 |
| Rate | 2·01 | 1·54 | 1·12 | 1·01 | 0·68 | 0·52 | 0·58 | 0·70 | 0·33 |
| Septic abortion— | |||||||||
| Number— | |||||||||
| Married | } | { | 26 | 26 | 24 | 16 | 29 | 17 | |
| }14 | 14 | 19{ | |||||||
| Single | } | { | 4 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 13 | 6 | |
| Rate | 0·50 | 0·51 | 0·71 | 1·12 | 1·09 | 1·04 | 1·07 | 1·73 | 0·96 |
One of the unfortunate features of this matter from the public health point of view is the extent to which this increase in deaths from abortion sepsis is counterbalancing and masking the very real improvement which has been achieved by the obstetrical services in the work for which they may justly be held responsible.
According to the international system of recording, these cases are included in the total maternal mortality.
Actually in New Zealand in the five-year period mentioned, abortion sepsis was responsible for one-quarter of the total maternal deaths.