Understanding the clinical utility of stillbirth investigations: a scoping review.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Investigating the causes of stillbirth is crucial for both parents and healthcare providers as it helps explain why the baby died, guides clinical care in future pregnancies, and aids in developing strategies to prevent stillbirth. The usefulness or utility of investigations for stillbirth is poorly defined and unclear. As a result, protocols for investigating the causes of stillbirth are currently based on clinical consensus and fail to prioritise investigative approaches that are most effective at determining a cause of death.

Objectives

The objectives of this scoping review were to identify the available evidence, key characteristics, and knowledge gaps regarding the utility of stillbirth investigations.

Search strategy

An a priori protocol was implement

SUBMITTER: Marsden T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11869745 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature