The review led by Australian Professor Joshua P. Voegel and colleagues, published in the prestigious journal The Lancet Global Health, provides a comprehensive summary of the consequences of poor delivery and postpartum care practices on maternal health. According to the study, these poor practices can cause serious health problems, such as secondary infertility, sexual dysfunction, urinary and anal incontinence, and postpartum depression and anxiety, which can affect up to one in five women.  

Clinical practice guidelines recommend prevention and screening of women at risk, but this service is not being provided in many developed countries, including Spain. Nor in many cases do women receive treatment, with devastating consequences for the health of mothers, which can make it difficult for them to care for their babies.  

The authors highlight the need for health services to adopt evidence-based practices in which the health of mothers during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period are prioritised, professionals trained in these needs are available and mothers are provided with proven information so that they can make decisions about their health during this important stage. Only in this way will maternal health become a reality.

Improved health conditions have drastically reduced maternal mortality figures. However, a recent study published in the prestigious journal The Lancet Global Health highlights how women's physical and mental health suffers after giving birth. 

Up to a third of women who have given birth experience health problems beyond six weeks postpartum. The data come mostly from developed countries. Researchers warn that women need access to comprehensive quality care and more extensive multidisciplinary follow-up after childbirth.