C-Sections Can Cause 'More Harm Than Good' If 'Overused,' Opinion Piece Says

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Also Included In: Nursing / Midwifery;  Women's Health / Gynecology;  Public Health
Article Date: 27 Sep 2007 - 6:00 PDT

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Although caesarean sections can "sav[e] lives when performed as an emergency intervention" during childbirth, the procedure can cause "more harm than good when overused," Jennifer Block, author of the book "Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care," writes in a Los Angeles Times opinion piece.

According to Block, CDC last month released data showing that maternal mortality has increased for the "first time in decades," even though 99% of women give birth in a hospital with advanced technology. About 30% of U.S. infants are delivered through c-sections, which is "inherently riskier" than vaginal birth and can lead to repeat c-sections, which "carry even greater risks," Block writes.

U.S. "maternity wards are fast becoming surgical suites," Block writes, adding that the U.S. health care system has "become dangerously cavalier" about the increase in c-sections. "In many cases, women have no choice" in deciding whether to give birth vaginally or via c-section because "hundreds" of hospitals have "banned" vaginal births after c-sections, even though VBAC is a "low-risk event," according to Block. In addition, "many doctors will no longer attend [VBAC] because of malpractice liability."

Pregnant women in the U.S. need "entirely different care," Block says, adding, "They need doctors and hospitals that promote normal labor and delivery" (Block, Los Angeles Times, 9/24).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation© 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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