Senegal Tests Controversial Maternal Health Drug

April 21, 2011

Expectant mothers wait in queue for consultation at the maternity ward of the Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders-MSF) Aweil civil hospital, the only hospital in Sudan's Northern Bahr al-Ghazal state (File Photo - January 26, 2011)

A controversial drug that can save women from bleeding to death after delivery has shown promising results in trials conducted in Senegal

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Everyday, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 1,000 women die each day during complications with pregnancy and childbirth. WHO research shows 99 percent of these cases occur in developing countries where a quarter die from severe post-delivery bleeding.

The drug misoprostol, sold under the name Cytotec in the United States, may offer an easy and cost-effective solution. It is sold in tablet form and remains stable at room temperature, which makes it practical in hotter climates. Misoprostol trials have been conducted in developing countries such as Nepal, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Senegal to help women without access to proper healthcare facilities or trained staff.

Pregnant women watch television as they wait in the prenatal ward at Princess Christian Maternity Hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone (File Photo)

Doctor Bocaf Daff is in charge of the reproductive health division at the Ministry of Health and Prevention in Senegal. He has been leading a USAID-funded research project on misoprostol since 2008. They have tested its use after the delivery of more than 300 babies at community health clinics in two regions in Senegal.