Postpartum period
During the subacute postpartum period, psychological disorders may emerge. Among these are postpartum depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and in rare cases, puerperal psychosis. Postpartum mental illness can affect both mothers and fathers, and is not uncommon. Early detection and adequate treatment is required. Approximately 25% – 85% of postpartum women will experience the "blues" for a few days. Between 7% and 17% may experience clinical depression, with a higher risk among those women with a history of clinical depression. Prevalence of PTSD following normal childbirth (excluding stillbirth or major complications) is estimated to be between 2.8 and 5.6% at 6 weeks postpartum.
Non-pneumatic anti-shock garment
For every woman who dies, there are 30 women who suffer a disability as a result of pregnancy or childbirth related complications (a maternal morbidity) and 10 who experience a 'near miss mortality' (a life-threatening obstetric complication). Morbidities can be serious, lifelong ailments which compromise a woman's health, productivity, quality of life, family health and ability to participate in community life. If a mother dies after childbirth, the newborn is ten times more likely to die before the age of two, other children are more likely to suffer from decreased nutrition and decreased schooling. Many motherless families find it difficult to survive, often with older children having to drop out of school in order to work to help support the family or being sent to live with a relatives intact family. In addition to this, maternal and newborn deaths are estimated to cost the world $15 billion in lost productivity annually, with maternal health proven to support a country's economic growth and cut poverty. Maternal death and disability is a human rights issue. It also means hardships and loss of productivity for families, communities and nations. This is of such great concern that in 2000, world leaders decided that improving maternal health should be one of the 8 Millennium Development Goals for the international community.