Characteristics of tools that measure blood loss after vaginal births: a new target product profile

We worked on a document that describes the minimum and ideal characteristics of health products measuring blood loss after vaginal births. This type of document is called a target product profile or TPP.

This TPP helps people design and develop effective and affordable products that accurately measure blood loss after vaginal birth. It aims to help improve maternal health outcomes globally.

Read the final TPP (PDF 594 KB). The document was developed in collaboration with Concept Foundation, with feedback from different experts.

Based on your feedback, we're also developing a second TPP for intraoperative caesarean blood loss measurement tools.

You can view more target product profiles on the Accelerating Innovation for Mothers (AIM) website.

Accurately measuring blood loss after birth

Postpartum haemorrhage is when a woman bleeds excessively after giving birth. More than 20% of maternal deaths are because of postpartum haemorrhage. This makes it the biggest reason for maternal deaths globally.

It can be easier to manage and treat postpartum haemorrhage when we spot it early. To do this, the World Health Organization recommends objective and accurate measurement of blood loss for all women who have just given birth.

Although there are tools to measure blood loss after birth, some are not accurate, easy to use or affordable. Our TPP document describes the minimum and ideal characteristics of an effective tool to quickly and accurately identify postpartum haemorrhage.

This will especially help pregnant women in low- and middle-income countries, where rates of maternal deaths from postpartum haemorrhage are highest.