Purpose: To characterize the perinatal situation in Latvia today and to elaborate a program for future perinatal care.
Method: We have analyzed the causes and structure of perinatal mortality at the Riga Maternity Home (RMH), a tertiary hospital where one-fifth of all Latvia's babies are born, and compared the results with Latvia in general.
Results: Since 1991, perinatal mortality has varied between 17 and 23 per 1000 births annually at the ORMH and between 17 and 19 per 1000 births in Latvia as a whole. According to official statistics, perinatal hypoxia is the main cause of perinatal death in about half of the cases. There is a high percentage of antenatal (45%) and intrapartum (12%) deaths.
Conclusions: We have elaborated a number of measures to develop antenatal care and improve the intranatal care for term and preterm infants.