Maternal and fetal outcomes of emergency obstetric referrals to a Nigerian teaching hospital

Abstract

Our study sought to determine the maternal and fetal outcomes of emergency obstetric referrals to a Nigerian teaching hospital as well as assess reasons for these referrals. We enrolled women referred or who presented themselves to the emergency obstetric unit for management of complications of pregnancy, labour, delivery or the puerperium. The majority presented late, their mean duration of stay at the referring facility being 22.25 h. Only nine (7.3%) were transported by ambulance. Severe pre-eclampsia and eclampsia (in 33, 26.8%) were the commonest obstetric indications for referral. Stillbirths occurred in 20/122(16.4%). There were eleven maternal deaths, giving an emergency referral fatality rate of 8.9%. Both maternal and fetal outcomes of these emergency obstetric referrals were poor owing mainly to late presentation, this being the result, among other factors, of an inefficient referral system.