C-Section Rates Climb

A new study has surprisingly revealed that from 1996-2007, the rate of cesarean section deliveries rose nearly 50%.

The study was conducted by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Consortium n Safe Labor; Dr. Jun Zhang, senior investigator in the institute’s Division of Epidemiology, Statistics and Prevention, led the research.

The team collected and analyzed data from 229,000 electronic records from 19 hospitals; specifically, they discovered that in 2007, 30.5% of all deliveries were via C-section.  The C-section rate was slightly higher for first-time deliveries (31.5%).

This percentage increased substantially for women who had induced labors – the C-section rate is twice as high among these women.   The team also discovered the following:

 *many of those who had C-sections due to abnormal or difficult childbirth had the surgery when the   uterus was dilated less than 6 cm

 *of those who had a C before labor actually started, 31% had a uterine scar from an earlier pregnancy

According to Dr. Zhang, there are some logical reasons for the increase; the trend of delaying pregnancy and childbirth until middle age being among them.  Also, an increase in multiple births due to fertility treatment has added to the increase, as has the rising obesity rate.  And, unsurprisingly, women who have had one C-section are more likely to have one later on.

But, despite the fact that there are legitimate reasons for some women to undergo a C-section, Dr. Zhang and his fellow researchers contend that more needs to be done to stem this disturbing trend.
To that end, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists updated guidelines emphasizing that some women who have had prior C-sections may be good candidates for vaginal delivery (VBAC) in subsequent deliveries.
There are good reasons to be more expeditious when it comes to C-sections; the risks associated with them are not insignificant.
 
Dr. Salih Yasin, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine tells BusinessWeek:  “First, cesarean section is not just having a baby; it is having a baby through major surgery.  So there is a chance of bleeding, infections and longer healing and recovery.”
 
Yasin further adds that incidents of C-section related hysterectomies and maternal death are higher after C-sections, as opposed to vaginal births.