International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

The government in Lahore, Pakistan, has pledged to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates in areas affected by floods, which have spread across the region.

A scheme, called 24/7 Basic Obstetric Care Services, has been launched with funding from children's charity Unicef, reports the Express Tribune.

Sexual health campaigns need to be developed to target everyone, not just those considered to be at-risk, according to the Terrence Higgins Trust.

Women who go through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment using donor eggs may be more at risk from pre-eclampsia than those using traditional IVF, according to a new study.

Some 77 women who had given birth using donated eggs were compared to 81 females who had used IVF but with their own eggs, reports Reuters.

Half of all cervical cancer cases are missed before the late stages, according to a new study.

Around a third of breast cancer sufferers in the US are diagnosed with the disease too late, meaning cancer has usually spread, reducing the chances of survival, the study by the US Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC) found.

Heartburn medication, such as proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs), does not seem to increase the risk of birth defects when they are taken during the first trimester of pregnancy, according to a new study.

The study looked at more than 840,000 live births in Denmark between 1996 and 2008. Some 2.6 per cent of them involved major birth defects.

British scientists have developed a urine test which could detect whether a woman will develop pre-eclampsia during her pregnancy.

Research led by the University of Leicester and the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust in the UK found analysing the protein in urine could predict if a woman would experience the potentially life-threatening condition.

A Bollywood actress and social activist in India has claimed the government in the country needs some kind of "emotional trigger" in order to commit to tackling maternal mortality rates.

Shabana Azmi said politicians in the country need to prioritise women's healthcare.

Morocco is reportedly stepping up attempts to reduce maternal mortality levels in the country.

The government is planning to introduce a range of measures to assist women who give birth without medical supervision, which particularly occurs in rural regions of the African nation.

A Colombian indigenous group, the Embera, have said they will stop practising female genital mutilation (FGM).

According to Colombia Reports, the practice was widespread in the community and performed on young girls, reports El Tiempo.

A new £15 cervical cancer test could save the lives of thousands of women.

The Cobas test, which researchers say is more accurate than the smear, returns results in less than a day.

It is thought it could be available for use within a year.