Levels, timing, and etiology of stillbirths in Sylhet district of Bangladesh

Table 1 Verbal autopsy case definitions for selected causes of antepartum and intrapartum stillbirths

Timing of stillbirth	Cause	Case definitions applied in verbal autopsy data
Antepartum ('skin and tissue was pulpy' or'baby stopped moving before labor')	Congenital abnormality	very small head/no brain at the time of birth; OR mass or defect on the back of the head or spine
	Maternal hemorrhage	vaginal bleeding during pregnancy
	Maternal hypertensive disorders	convulsion; OR hypertension during pregnancy diagnosed by a health worker*
	Maternal infections	fever during delivery; OR green/brown color or foul smelling amniotic fluid
	Maternal severe anemia	severe anemia during pregnancy†
Intrapartum (*Neither'skin and tissue was pulpy' nor*'baby stopped moving before labor')	Congenital abnormality	very small head/no brain at the time of birth; OR mass or defect on the back of the head or spine
	Intrapartum hypoxia	breech presentation; hand/feet delivered first; cord delivered first; obstructed labor; prolonged labor, OR vaginal bleeding during pregnancy
	Preterm labour	Gestational age < 8 months
	Maternal hypertensive disorders	convulsion; OR hypertension during pregnancy diagnosed by a health worker*
	Maternal intrapartum infections	fever during delivery; OR green/brown color or foul smelling amniotic fluid

*Reported history of having the diagnosis by a health worker
†Reported, which may or may not be based on clinical diagnosis by health workers

ISSN: 1471-2393