Óbitos fetais associados a condições crônicas maternas e complicações gestacionais: uma revisão de literatura

Abstract

Fetal death occurs from the 20th week of gestation, defined as the complete expulsion or extraction of the fetus from the maternal body, with a weight and length equal to or greater than 500 grams and 25 centimeters, respectively. Fetal death mainly occurs when women have pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases, or develop complications during pregnancy, such as preeclampsia, eclampsia, uterine rupture, oligohydramnios, and placental abruption (DPP). This study aims to investigate how maternal chronic conditions and gestational complications influence the occurrence of fetal deaths during pregnancy. It is an integrative literature review based on the databases of the National Library of Medicine (PUBMED), Virtual Health Library (VHL), and Google Scholar, using the Health Sciences Descriptors (DeCS): <Fetal deaths,= <Maternal chronic diseases,= and <Gestational complications,= as well as their English equivalents in MeSH: <Fetal deaths,= <Maternal chronic diseases,= and <Gestational complications.= Articles in Portuguese and English published between 2020 and 2024, with full text and addressing the topic, were included. Letters to the editor, incomplete articles, duplicates, and those unrelated to the theme were excluded. It was found that maternal chronic diseases, as well as advanced maternal age, are factors that increase the risk of complications leading to fetal death. It was concluded that reducing fetal mortality depends on an effective and early approach involving the diagnosis and proper management of maternal conditions and access to quality healthcare. Access to prenatal care is, therefore, essential to ensure maternal and fetal health and reduce the risk of fetal deaths. Thus, improving public health practices and monitoring highrisk pregnancies are crucial to reducing fetal mortality.