Previously, we documented that first and repeat cesarean rates are much higher than they should be and focused on how to choose a care provider who would best promote avoiding a first cesarean and who would best promote avoiding a repeat cesarean. Now we turn to...
For more than a decade, the U.S. cesarean rate has stood at 33%.5 That’s one in every three pregnant women for over ten years having their baby via major abdominal surgery. One reason for this is the rate in 1st-time mothers: one in four 1st-time mothers at low risk...
When it comes to comparing outcomes with a midwife versus a doctor, research shows that in women with uncomplicated pregnancies, midwives are the better bet. Let’s look at the details of a recent study. Once we do that, I’ll explain why midwives do better than...
A study in the most recent issue of Birth provides eye-opening illumination on non-medical reasons for high cesarean rates (Kennedy 2016). Investigators at Yale’s med-school affiliated hospital conducted in-depth interviews eliciting opinions on how the institution...
Italian obstetricians report that replacing standard management of slow labor with a physiologic approach greatly reduced cesarean deliveries and the use of other medical interventions in 1st-time mothers. They conducted a before-and-after study in 419 1st-time...
“Our evidence suggests that mainstream obstetric science follows mainstream obstetric practice. A patient and expectant approach to birth…where all is considered normal until proved otherwise, produces a science that proves intervention to be unnecessary....
The California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative has released Toolkit to Support Vaginal Birth & Reduce Primary Cesareans. Reading it inspired “shock and awe,” “awe” of the herculean effort that has produced a meticulously documented (338 references) manual that...
EurekAlert reports on a trial finding that giving 1st-time mothers more time to push out their babies cuts the cesarean rate for prolonged second stage in half. The American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists’ sets the threshold for prolonged second stage in...
One theory behind laborists, obstetricians employed by hospitals to provide 24/7 coverage, is that it will reduce cesarean rates by removing time management considerations from the decision. Medscape, however, reports on a study presented at the Society for...
A New York Times commentary serves as an eye-opener for anyone unaware of the degree to which having a cesarean depends on factors having nothing to do with the health or well-being of mothers and babies. The commentary also discusses measures intended to address...
The first in Henci’s new Take Charge of Your Birth Series, Labor Pain: What’s Your Best Strategy? delivers up-to-date access to the best medical research plus practical strategies for developing your plan and putting it into action. Also available in audiobook.
