Baby Birth

 

Caesarean Birth

 

There are two kinds of Caesarean. An elective Caesarean (sometimes called a ‘cold section’ in medical jargon) means a Caesarean that is carried out before labour begins. An emergency Caesarean is one that is carried out as a result of some complication arising during labour. It may not necessarily be an emergency situation. Your Doctors may have been discussing the possibility with you for some time before finally deciding that it is necessary.

 

Your obstetrician might advise you to have an elective Caesarean if:

 

You have serious pre-eclampsia which is threatening your own health and the well-being of your baby

You have a serious medical condition which means that you should avoid the stress of labour

You are expecting triplets, quadruplets or more

The placenta is positioned across the neck of your womb, making it impossible for your baby to be born vaginally

Your baby is lying across your tummy and cannot be turned to a head down position

Your baby is too big to be able to get through your pelvis

Your baby is in the breech position. Whether all breech babies should be delivered by Caesarean is a matter of debate. Some obstetricians prefer to turn babies into a head down position at the end of pregnancy (this is called external cephalic version or ECV), or to give the mother the chance to try for a vaginal delivery with her baby in the breech position. If your baby is breech, discuss what you would like to happen with your obstetrician and midwife. The research is currently unresolved about whether it is safer to deliver breech babies vaginally or by Caesarean.

 

An emergency Caesarean might become necessary after labour has started because:

 

Your baby’s heartbeat shows that he is not coping well with contractions (in medical terms, the baby is described as being ‘distressed’)

The cervix stops dilating or dilates very slowly so that both mother and baby become exhausted

The placenta starts to come away from the wall of the uterus and there is a risk of haemorrhage (bleeding)

The baby does not move down into the pelvis, indicating that the pelvis is too small for the baby to get through

 

Whether you are offered an elective or an emergency Caesarean, make sure that you understand the reasons why. Even in an emergency situation, there’s nearly always time to give the mother and her birth partner a brief explanation of why a Caesarean is considered necessary.

 

After your baby has been born, it’s a good idea to ask your Doctor to explain the reasons for the Caesarean with you. Then, if you choose to have another baby, you will know whether you are likely to need another Caesarean or not.

 

 

Risks of a Caesarean Section

 

When a Caeserean is done, the risks and benefits of the procedure need to be weighed. This includes looking at the added benefits and risks of doing a Caeserean or of birthing the child vaginally. Sometimes the benefits of the Caeserean will outweigh the risks, and sometime the vaginal birth benefits will outweigh the risks of the Caeserean.

Caeserean birth is major surgery, and, as with other surgical procedures, risks are involved. The estimated risk of a woman dying after a Caeserean birth is less than one in 2,500 (the risk of death after a vaginal birth is less than one in 10,000). These are estimated risks for a large population of women. Individual medical conditions such as some heart problems may make the risk of vaginal birth higher than Caeserean birth.

 

Other risks for the mother include the following:

 

Infection. The uterus or nearby pelvic organs such as the bladder or kidneys can become infected.

Increased blood loss. Blood loss on the average is about twice as much with Caeserean birth as with vaginal birth. However, blood transfusions are rarely needed during a Caeserean.

 

Decreased bowel function. The bowel sometimes slows down for several days after surgery, resulting in distention, bloating and discomfort.

 

Respiratory complications. General anesthesia can sometimes lead to pneumonia.

 

Longer hospital stay and recovery time. Three to five days in the hospital is the common length of stay, whereas it is less than one to three days for a vaginal birth.

 

Reactions to anesthesia. The mother's health could be endangered by unexpected responses (such as blood pressure that drops quickly) to anesthesia or other medications during the surgery.

 

Risk of additional surgeries. For example, hysterectomy, bladder repair, etc.

 

In Caeserean birth, the possible risks to the baby include the following:

 

Premature birth. If the due date was not accurately calculated, the baby could be delivered too early.

 

Breathing problems. Babies born by Caeserean are more likely to develop breathing problems such as transient tachypnea (abnormally fast breathing during the first few days after birth).

 

Fetal injury. Although rare, the surgeon can accidentally nick the baby while making the uterine incision.

 

 

 

Source : pregnancy.health-info.org/labour-labor-birth/labour-signs.html 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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