Maternal mortality in Latin American urban areas: the case of São Paulo, Brazil.

This article describes maternal mortality trends in São Paulo, Brazil, from 1960 through 1990. In so doing, it compares mortality rates derived from death certificate data with rates suggested by three independent surveys conducted in the city of São Paulo in 1962-1963, 1974-1975, and 1986. In general, these data indicate that a substantial share of all maternal deaths in the city have been ascribed to other causes on death certificates, that prevailing maternal mortality levels are far higher than those found in the urban areas of most developed countries, and that in recent years levels of maternal mortality in the city have been rising. Various measures are suggested for improving the accuracy of available data and reducing the maternal mortality they describe.