FOI Ref: FOI/2022/4592
You asked
How many many women have suffered from either a deep vein thrombosis (Dvt) or pulmonary embolism at a result of pregnancy?
How many have died as a result of these conditions?
How many have received treatment and survived?
We said
Thank you for your enquiry.
Unfortunately, we do not hold information on how many are diagnosed with Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) or Pulmonary embolism after giving birth or their survival rates.
Our mortality data is derived from information collected at the point of death registration. The death certificate provides us with details of the cause/secondary cause, occupation and gender. However, it does not tell us if the deceased was pregnant or had recently given birth at the time of death.
If pregnancy is deemed to be part of the causal chain of death and is listed on the death certificate, then it can be coded as the underlying cause or a contributing factor. The O codes in the International Classification of Diseases which can be found in Table 11a and 11b of the following publication show figures for pregnancy related deaths: Deaths registered in England and Wales.
A maternal death is defined internationally as a death of a woman during or up to six weeks (42 days) after the end of pregnancy (whether the pregnancy ended by termination, miscarriage, or a birth, or was an ectopic pregnancy) through causes associated with, or exacerbated by, pregnancy (World Health Organisation 2010).
To provide data to meet this definition the MBRRACE-UK programme of work is responsible for the national Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths (CEMD) within the United Kingdom: https://www.npeu.ox.ac.uk/mbrrace-uk.
The report of the Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths 2018-2020 can be found here: Reports | NPEU > MBRRACE-UK (ox.ac.uk).
This is your best source of data on maternal deaths. They can be contacted via email at mbrrace-uk@npeu.ox.ac.uk.