On average, 16 women die every day in the region from complications of pregnancy or childbirth. Radiology could lead to earlier diagnoses for more effective treatment.
Washington, D.C., 29 October 2015 (PAHO/WHO) — Better access to ultrasound and other radiology services can reduce maternal and neonatal deaths across the Americas, experts at the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) said in advance of World Radiology Day.
“Obstetric ultrasound is instrumental in identifying potential risks to mother and child, and interventional radiology makes childbirth safer for some women by managing postpartum hemorrhage,” said Dr. Pablo Jimenez, PAHO/WHO Regional Advisor in Radiological Health. “But the full potential of these radiological techniques have yet to be realized in our region. On World Radiology Day, we are stressing the importance of strengthening health systems to make life-saving radiology services more widely accessible.”
On average, 16 women die every day in Latin America and the Caribbean from complications of pregnancy or childbirth, while 250 babies die each day before having reached 28 days of age. Many of the complications, including fetal malpresentation, multiple gestations, ectopic pregnancy and placenta previa, can be managed with early diagnosis starting with ultrasound imaging.
Interventional radiology techniques such as embolization, in which radiological images are used to guide a catheter into the body to stop internal bleeding without open surgery, can play a major role in reducing deaths from postpartum hemorrhage. Overall, an estimated 8.2% of mothers who give birth in Latin America and the Caribbean suffer from a severe postpartum hemorrhage that requires transfusion.
Pregnant women in high-income countries usually receive early and advanced prenatal care, including radiology services, however, those services are lacking in many parts of Latin America and the Caribbean. And where the services are offered, they are often of questionable quality. In some cases the radiographers are poorly trained to use equipment, while in other cases the technology either doesn’t work or has not been properly maintained.
“Ultrasound equipment is relatively affordable, portable and, when operated by trained professionals, completely safe and accurate,” Jimenez said. “But radiology requires well trained professionals with extensive knowledge in the acquisition and interpretation of images coupled with the implementation of quality control and assurance programs to ensure a reliable and accurate diagnosis. Our goal is to make that level of care much more widely available.”
Expert panel on radiology and women’s and children’s health
These and other issues will be discussed at an interactive panel discussion on Oct. 30 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., to mark World Radiology Day at PAHO/WHO headquarters in Washington, D.C. The panel will highlight the role of ultrasonography in maternal and neonatal health and can be followed virtually at www.paho.org/wrd2015/webex.
Panelists will include Dr. Pablo Duran and Dr. Bremen de Mucio of the Latin American Center for Perinatology, Women and Reproductive Health; Dr. Albert K. Chun of George Washington University; Dr. Karen Sohan of Mt. Hope Women’s Hospital in Trinidad and Tobago; Oscar Barahona from American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography; and Maya Escobar Vidarte, a radiologist in Colombia
October is also Medical Ultrasound Awareness Month, whose goal is to educate the public on the many uses of medical ultrasound in health care.
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