In childbirth, when to begin pushing during labor does not affect C-section rates

image credit: verywellfamily.com

More than 3 million women in the United States give birth each year. But obstetricians have differing opinions about when women should begin pushing during labor and whether the timing of pushing increases the likelihood of a cesarean section, which carries a higher risk of complications compared with a vaginal delivery.

Many obstetricians recommend that a woman begin pushing as soon the cervix is fully dilated, while others advise waiting until she feels the urge to push. Until now, doctors have not had conclusive evidence about which approach is better for mothers and their babies.

Now, a multicenter study led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and involving more than 2,400 first-time pregnant women, shows that the timing of pushing has no effect on whether women deliver vaginally or by C-section.

However, women who delayed pushing experienced longer labors and higher risks of severe postpartum bleeding and infections. Their babies also were more likely to develop sepsis -- a serious complication related to infection.

Increased instances of C-sections are causing evolutionary changes

via popsugar.com

"A small team of researchers with members from Austria and the U.S. has found statistical evidence that an increase in the number of mothers giving birth via C-section over the past several decades has been causing an evolutional change—babies' heads are getting bigger, even as the birth canal size remains fixed. The team has published the results of their analysis in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Scientists have known for quite some time that humans have more trouble giving birth than most other animals—this is because of the passage of proportionally larger babies' heads through a relatively small birth canal. 

When a baby has a head that is too big to pass through (known as fetopelvic disproportion), surgeons manually remove the baby through an incision in the mother's lower abdomen—a procedure known as a Cesarean or C-section (believed to be named after Julius Caesar, who was thought to have been cut from his dying mother's womb.)

But what is the evolutionary impact of resorting to C-section every time a baby cannot fit through its mother's birth canal? The researchers with this new effort believe it has led to even more babies being born with over-large heads. They used logic and math to come to this conclusion..."

Learn more:http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-12-instances-c-sections-evolutionary.html