Severe maternal morbidity identified in the Hospital Information System of the Brazilian National Health System in Paraná State, Brazil, 2010.

OBJECTIVE: to describe near miss maternal morbidity among women living in Paraná State, Brazil, in 2010.

METHODS: this was a descriptive study using Brazilian National Hospital Information System (SIH/SUS) data on all hospital admissions with primary diagnosis falling under Chapter XV of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision and/or with records of obstetric procedures indicative of near misses; three criteria were used to define severe maternal morbidity.

RESULTS: 4,890 admissions owing to near miss were identified, with a rate of 52.9 hospitalizations per 1,000 births, a rate of 69.8/1,000 among women aged 35-39 and a rate of 356.6/1,000 among women aged 44-49; the leading causes of hospitalization were preeclampsia (28.2%), haemorrhage (23.7%) and immune system dysfunction (14.0%).

CONCLUSION: the results indicate the need to pay greater attention to women aged 35 and over since they had higher rates of near miss.