NUNZIUM

A stillbirth occurs every 16 seconds somewhere in the world. It means that every year, about 2 million babies are stillborn – a loss that reaches far beyond the loss of life. It has a long-lasting traumatic impact on women and their families worldwide. Perhaps even more tragically, most of these deaths could have been avoided with high-quality care antenatally and during birth. Over 40 per cent of all stillbirths occurred during labour – a loss that could be prevented with improved monitoring and access to emergency obstetric care when required. This tragic loss of life remains a neglected issue, as worldwide data on stillbirths are mainly absent. A Neglected Tragedy: The Global Burden of Stillbirths, the first-ever stillbirth report by the UN Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (see link below), is a critical milestone in improving the availability of these data globally and driving political and public recognition of the issue. The report finds that despite progress being made since 2000, stillbirths have not declined as rapidly as maternal and newborn mortality. If current trends continue, an additional 19 million stillbirths will occur before 2030. A first global study, published November 29 in Nature Communications, may explain this negative trend as it reveals a link between stillbirths and air pollution. The research used data on stillbirths and air pollution between 1998 and 2016 from 54 low- and middle-income countries, including Pakistan, India and Nigeria. The researchers estimated the number of stillbirths attributable to PM2.5 exposure. PM2.5 are microscopic particles usually found in smoke, having a diameter of 2.5 micrometres (0.0025 mm) or smaller. The study concludes that in 2015 there were 830'000 stillbirths attributable to exposure to pollution (40% of the total). The proportion of stillbirths attributed to PM2.5 pollution was exceptionally high in Pakistan, India, Nigeria and China. The underlying biological mechanisms are not yet clear. The researchers hypothesize that pollution particles passing through the placenta could cause "irreversible embryonic damage" and harm the placenta itself. Air pollution could also restrict the ability of the mother's body to pass oxygen to the foetus. Overall, independently of the exact causes, the study shows that reducing air pollution levels would reduce the risks of stillbirth.