The rate of fetal death in Brazil dropped 22.9% in 16 years, according to a study by researchers from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC). The number of stillbirths declined from 13.4 deaths per 1000 births in 1996 to 10 per 1000 births in 2012 (Maternal and Child Health Journal, March 23, 2016). Two thirds of all fetal deaths occurred at 28 weeks of pregnancy or later, and 40% of cases were due to unspecified causes. Despite this gradual decline, stillbirths still occur in Brazil at almost double the rates reported by developed countries, varying widely according to the educational level of women and the level of development in different Brazilian regions. Women with no formal education had a stillbirth rate of 24.3 deaths per 1000 births in 2012, five times more than pregnant women who had attended at least 12 years of school.
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