TEXAS — In a first-of-its-kind data analysis report, ProPublica found that sepsis in pregnant women has become more prevalent since the overturning of Roe. v. Wade.
Sepsis is a life-threatening emergency that happens when an infection you already have triggers a chain reaction throughout your body, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sepsis can lead to permanent kidney failure, brain damage and dangerous blood clotting.
The ProPublica report found that the rate of sepsis shot up more than 50% for women hospitalized when they lost their pregnancies in the second trimester. The surge was found in patients whose fetus may still have had a heartbeat when they arrived at the hospital.
Two such cases involved two Texas women who died of sepsis while miscarrying. Doctors delayed emptying the uterus on the women because doing so would have been considered an abortion.
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ProPublica’s recent report found that, after Texas banned abortion, dozens more pregnant and postpartum women died in Texas hospitals than had in pre-pandemic years. The publication stated that pre-pandemic data was used to avoid potential “COVID-19-related distortions.“
To chart pregnancy-related sepsis infections, ProPublica purchased and analyzed seven years of Texas’ hospital discharge data.
ProPublica’s findings:
When abortion was legal in Texas, the rate of sepsis for women hospitalized during second-trimester pregnancy loss was relatively steady.
Sepsis spiked when Texas’ first abortion ban went into effect
As the maternal mortality rate dropped nationally, it rose substantially in Texas.
The report comes as state legislators and medical providers are calling for clarification surrounding Texas's abortion laws. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick suggested the Legislature amend the language of the abortion ban to address confusion over when doctors may terminate pregnancies.
Currently, Texas law threatens up to 99 years in prison for providing an abortion, unless it is a “medical emergency.” What constitutes as a “medical emergency” has been subject to debate.
Dozens of maternal health experts who reviewed ProPublica’s findings told the publication that the report is evidence that the state’s abortion ban is leading to dangerous delays in care and “the only explanation they could see for the sudden jump in sepsis cases.”
To read ProPublica’s full analysis on the rise of sepsis in pregnant women, click here.
