Varying Aspects of Global World Health - 2

This is the second instalment of the 'varying aspects of global world health' post; I will once again be using pictures from Worldmapper. All images belong to them.

Stillbirths

Stillbirths

Stillbirths are much more of an issue in MEDCs than maternal mortality or infant mortality, though once again it is an LEDC (Mauritania), which has the highest rate. In the developed world, there is a greater knowledge and understanding of pre-natal issues meaning warning signs can be picked up more easily by the mother and at frequent checkups which are available in these areas in the world. For example, a mother would know that if her foetus has not kicked in a few days there may be an issue and if at a scan the doctors can see all is not well an emergency caesarean can take place to deliver the baby before it dies inside the womb. In LEDCs they simply do not have the knowledge or healthcare measures to monitor pregnancies and prevent stillbirths from occurring. The UK and other MEDCs are larger in this map than they have been with others because stillbirths can still occur late in a pregnancy for reasons unknown to medical professionals.

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Infant Mortality

Infant Mortality

Infant mortality refers to babies who will die within the first year of their lives and in 2002 there were 7.2 million infant deaths worldwide. As can be seen in the map, it is once again MEDCs who experience this the most, with Sierra Leone having 165 per 1000 live births dying before the age of one. There are many contributing factors which affect infant mortality, with a lack of medical care and postnatal care being the most significant. In countries such as India, there are widespread diseases such as cholera and in Africa malaria, which means newly born infants are highly susceptible to life-threatening illnesses at a critical point in their life as there are little measures in place to prevent the spread of disease. When ill, there are few and widespread medical centres which have little medical resources to deal with such issues and return the children to full health, relying heavily on aid. Therefore, it is only in few cases that the child will live long after one year after developing or catching an illness or disease. Therefore, we can conclude that infant mortality rates are low in MEDCs, such as Sweden who have one of the lowest amounts of infant mortality, due to little or no epidemic type diseases being present in the country and the developed medical system to return ill children back to good health.

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Maternal Mortality

Maternal Mortality

Maternal mortality is linked to infant mortality in the fact that they both occur due to underdeveloped medical systems or the lack of access to what little treatment they can have. Once again on the map it is Africa, in particular Sierra Leone, with the highest rates. India is the most enlarged with developed nations such as the UK and USA being minuscule. In these LEDCs there is not pre-natal and post-natal support available like in MEDCs, meaning health advice is not given and any complications simply are not recognised, with childbirth being the time when the highest percentage of maternal deaths will occur. This is because only few women will have their child in presence of a doctor or health care professional and therefore any unseen issues such as high blood pressure, hemagering or infection after childbirth can easily result in death.