Ruptured uterus and the partograph

Abstract

The objective of the study was to find out whether the introduction of the WHO partograph [1] to the labor wards in Accra in 1990 has been followed by a reduction in the incidence of ruptured uterus as well as an improvement in maternal and perinatal mortalities.

There were 136 cases of ruptured uterus and 71 067 deliveries between January 1996 and December 2001 (incidence 1 in 523, Table 1). In 1971, when the partograph had not been introduced in Accra, the incidence was 1 in 257 [2].