Journal of the Indian Medical Association April 1953

Poor health and nutrition stress and strain of the mother till the time of delivery are a few of the many factors responsible for the stillbirths in the low income group. [...] A considerable nuber of infant deaths are due to the abnormal location of the placenta prolapse and knots of the umbilical cord abnormal presentations of the foetus prolonged labour rupture of the uterus obstetric manoeuvres and analgesics. [...] Clear and accurate perceptions of the cause of foetal and neonatal deaths are only possible by routine autopsy examination of these infants and the knowledge so obtained when reviewed on the retrospect in correltion with the obstetric and clinical findings of the mother and infant is bound to promote in the redution of infant mortality. [...] Maturity of the foetus was assessed by the presence or absence of ossific centres birth weight length and in case of the male infants the location of testes was considered. [...] The difference in the mean healing time of the control ulcers as seen in the above tables when the ulcers produced were of approximately equal dimesions is due to the variations in the size age and individual resistance of the animals employed.