Study Finds No Link Between Stillbirth and Previous Caesarean Section

A study by the University of Calgary of 157,029 second births has found that having a caesarean does not raise the risk of a stillbirth in a subsequent pregnancy. These latest findings contradict previous resarch which had suggested a link. The study which took into consideration factors such as maternal weight found that obesity which had been consistently linked to both caesareans and stillbirths may instead be the determining factor. Among women who had previously had a caesarean the stillbirth rate was 2.1 per 1,000 compared with 1.6 per 1,000 in women without a history of caesareans – not a significant statistical difference. According to researcher Dr Stephen Wood the study “strongly suggests that previous Caesarean section does not increase the risk of stillbirth in subsequent pregnancies”. There continues however to be conern about the continuing rise in the rate of caesarean sections among medical professionals. Dr Wood sounded a word of caution about their increasing prevalence, stressing that a caesarean is a major surgical procedure that women should opt for only for sound medical reasons.

Posted Thursday 12th June 2008