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Stillbirths and Neonatal Deaths

What are the causes?

The main known causes of death include prematurity and birth defects. Additionally, multiple pregnancy, smoking, a mother aged over thirty-five, infection and maternal medical problems are known to be risk factors for stillbirth and neonatal death. However, currently at least half of all stillbirths are classified as 'unexplained'; although the evidence shows that around half of these babies have not fulfilled their optimal growth potential.

View Background Background  |  Inheritance patterns and prenatal diagnosis View Inheritance patterns and prenatal diagnosis

Medical text written November 1991 by Contact a Family. Approved November 1991 by Professor M Patton, Professor of Medical Genetics, St Georges Hospital Medical School, London, UK and Dr J E Wraith, Consultant Paediatrician, Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, Manchester, UK. Last reviewed September 2001 by SANDS (Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society), London, UK.

 

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