[Precarious situation of obstetric practice in Gabon]

In 1993, 2,008 deliveries were recorded at the Provincial Maternity Hospital at Franceville in Gabon. The frequency of cesarean section was 3%. The perinatal mortality of children born by cesaraean section was high, 213 per thousand. The principal indications for cesarean section were the baby being too large to pass through the pelvis, bicicatricial uterus, breech presentation and toxemia during pregnancy. The maternal mortality rate was 200 per 100,000, similar to the rates of most African countries, and 75% of the women that died had undergone cesarean section. The mortality rate for cesarean section was high (4.9%), so the indications for cesarean section in underdeveloped countries are limited. Malaria was the principal reason for the hospitalization of pregnant women, because it is endemic and is a serious condition for pregnant women. The next most frequent causes of hospitalization were a high risk of premature labor and hyperemesis gravidarum, the frequency of which is high among pregnant African women, particularly those of West Africa. Toxemia in pregnancy was the fourth most important cause of hospitalization. The rate of cesarean section rupture was 2.5 per thousand. Only 20% of these cases involved a cicatricial uterus, with no maternal deaths but a fetal mortality rate of 100%. The frequency of premature birth was 4.23% and the perinatal mortality rate was 48 per thousand, with 37 stillbirths per thousand and an early neonatal mortality rate of 11 per thousand. The perinatal mortality of breech presentations was high (330 per thousand), with 13.9 delivered by cesarean section. These levels are similar to those for other African countries. Maternal health could be improved by introducing several consultations during pregnancy, improving hospital hygiene and making antibiotics more widely available. Fetal survival could be improved by preventing premature births, providing more help with delivery, decreasing the time to intervention and improving neonatal resuscitation techniques.