The number of women choosing to deliver their baby via cesarean section has risen over time. There are now approximately 30 percent of deliveries that end in cesarean. Some parents, however, are alarmed by this fact because there have been a few studies saying that babies born via cesarean section have higher tendency to suffer from different complications both short and long term. And it puts mothers at a higher risk for complications as well. A new study has revealed that incidence like this can be avoided if the final phase of labor is prolonged.
Researchers at the Thomas Jefferson University believe that if women in labor are given an extended time during the final phase of labor, the rate of births via C-section could go down by as much as 55 percent without negatively affecting the mothers' health.
Dr. Alexis Gimovsky, a fellow in maternal fetal medicine at Thomas Jefferson University in Pennsylvania, and an author of the study said that the time recommendation came from an expert in the 1800s. "Since then, there's really only been retrospective data used to validate that guideline," he continued, Huffington Post reported.
Researchers looked at the data in the 1950s and found that women who deliver their babies within two hours had lower incidence infection and serious post-partum bleeding.
According to parents.com, the research team examined 78 women between 36 and 41 weeks pregnant for this particular study. A few participants were chosen to be a part of the "extended labor" group will have an additional hour to be in labor, while others will be a part of the "usual labor" group.
"The study really showed what we've seen in practice for years, which is that there can be benefits to allowing women to labor longer," said Gimovsky. "We were excited to see that it dramatically reduced the risk of C-section in this specific group of women."
For now, pregnant women should be able to talk to their care providers about their care providers about their birthing options and understand that there are times when intervention is necessary, Gimovsky explained.
