SynthesisBMJ open2019
Inequalities and stillbirth in the UK: a meta-narrative review.
Synthesis in BMJ open, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Deprived areas and adverse perinatal outcome: a systematic review.Archives of gynecology and obstetrics · 2024Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Clinical characteristics, prognostic factors, and maternal and neonatal outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection among hospitalized pregnant women: A systematic review.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2020Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Optimising Psychosocial Interventions for Parents Following Perinatal Bereavement: A Qualitative Study of Midwives' Perspectives.Journal of advanced nursing · 2026Article
- Tackling child poverty in the UK.BMJ paediatrics open · 2026Article
- Impact of midwife continuity of carer on stillbirth rate and first feed in England.Communications medicine · 2025Article
- The first 1000 days: the price of inequalities in high and middle-income countries.Pediatric research · 2025Review
- Disparities in Stillbirths in England: Analysis of A Population-Based Study of 1.3 Million Births.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2025Observational
- Is there a relation between stillbirth and low levels of vitamin D in the population? A bi-national follow-up study of vitamin D fortification.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2023Article
- Understanding ethnic inequalities in stillbirth rates: a UK population-based cohort study.BMJ open · 2022Article
- An exploration of migrant women's perceptions of public health messages to reduce stillbirth in the UK: a qualitative study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2021Article
- Conversations about stillbirth prevention during pregnancy care from the perspectives of recent parents of refugee and migrant backgrounds, health professionals, and interpreters: A qualitative study.Women's health (London, England)Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo review what is known about the relationship between stillbirth and inequalities from different disciplinary perspectives to inform stillbirth prevention strategies.
designSystematic review using the meta-narrative method.
settingStudies undertaken in the UK. DATA SOURCES: Scoping phase: experts in field, exploratory electronic searches and handsearching. Systematic searches phase: Nine databases with no geographical or date restrictions. Non-English language studies were excluded. STUDY SELECTION: Any investigation of stillbirth and inequalities with a UK component. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Three authors extracted data and assessed study quality. Data were summarised, tabulated and presented graphically before synthesis of the unfolding storyline by research tradition; and then of the commonalities, differences and interplays between narratives into resultant summary meta-themes.
resultsFifty-four sources from nine distinctive research traditions were included. The evidence of associations between social inequalities and stillbirth spanned 70 years. Across research traditions, there was recurrent evidence of the social gradient remaining constant or increasing, fuelling repeated calls for action (meta-theme 1: something must be done). There was less evidence of an effective response to these calls. Data pertaining to socioeconomic, area and ethnic disparities were routinely collected, but not consistently recorded, monitored or reported in relation to stillbirth (meta-theme 2: problems of precision). Many studies stressed the interplay of socioeconomic status, deprivation or ethnicity with aggregated factors including heritable, structural, environmental and lifestyle factors (meta-theme 3: moving from associations towards intersectionality and intervention(s)). No intervention studies were identified.
conclusionResearch investigating inequalities and stillbirth in the UK is underdeveloped. This is despite repeated evidence of an association between stillbirth risk and poverty, and stillbirth risk, poverty and ethnicity. A specific research forum is required to lead the development of research and policy in this area, which can harness the multiple relevant research perspectives and address the intersections between different policy areas. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42017079228.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.