Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41053653›Full record

ArticleBMC pregnancy and childbirth2025

Cost of implementation and maintenance of maternal and perinatal death surveillance and response: a scoping review.

Carly Malburg, Merlin Willcox, Tracey Sach, Mary Kinney, Patricia Akweongo, Animesh Biswas, Florina Serbanescu

Abstract readScoping Review
In one paragraph

Article in BMC pregnancy and childbirth, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Carly MalburgDivision of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 4770 Buford Highway, Atlanta, GA, 30341, USA. cmalburg@cdcfoundation.org.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6766-1389
Merlin WillcoxSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
Tracey SachSchool of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
Mary KinneyDivision of Global Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Cape Town, Observatory, South Africa.
Patricia AkweongoUniversity of Ghana, Accra, Ghana.
Animesh BiswasUnited Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Florina SerbanescuDivision of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 4770 Buford Highway, Atlanta, GA, 30341, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundGlobally, most countries have policies and guidelines requiring maternal and perinatal death surveillance and response (MPDSR), a system that can reduce avoidable maternal and perinatal deaths. Economic studies of MPDSR help inform resources to implement and sustain MPDSR at subnational and national levels. This review aims to scope the range of economic studies available and examine types of costs incurred by LMICs to implement and maintain MPDSR.

methodsWe searched 11 electronic databases for key terms related to economics, maternal and/or perinatal death, health systems, surveillance, or audits/reviews. We included quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods articles reporting costs of MPDSR, published in English, Spanish, or French during 2012-2023. Two independent authors screened titles and abstracts and extracted data. Costs were converted to the United States dollar price year 2024.

resultsA total of 14,078 articles were systematically screened. Only 5 were included, as they reported costs of maternal and/or perinatal death surveillance and/or review. Of these only 3 reported itemized costs. None reported on costs of implementing recommendations. From the articles reporting itemized costs, in year 1 (start-up), the cost per death reviewed ranged from $113 to $5,758 and the cost per capita ranged from $0.40 to $1.11. In year 3, these declined to $86 to $577, and $0.26 to $0.66, respectively. The lowest cost per death was for conducting only maternal death reviews in health facilities. For community MPDSR, the lowest cost per capita was achieved by using a pre-existing functional household surveillance system to identify and investigate maternal and neonatal deaths. The highest cost was for establishing a new comprehensive death surveillance and review system, which investigated all deaths in women of reproductive age to identify maternal deaths only.

conclusionComparability was challenging because available literature was sparse and economic methods and study designs were heterogeneous. The cost-benefit of community death surveillance and review, compared to facility-based death notification and review, has not been clearly established. Better understanding of MPDSR costs is needed to prioritize and integrate MPDSR in health planning across system levels.

Indexed as

Maternal DeathMaternal MortalityPerinatal DeathPopulation SurveillanceDeveloping CountriesFemaleHumansInfant, NewbornPregnancyCosting analysisEconomic evaluationLow- to middle-income countiesMaternal perinatal death surveillance response

Identifiers

PMID41053653
PMCPMC12498452

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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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.