Obesity contributing to increased c-section rates
Posted on 13. Aug, 2010 by admin in Health
Is obesity contributing to high c-section rates? Yes say studies. The bulkier a woman on her EDC is, the higher is the chance she needing a cesarean section to deliver, says a new study.
One in every 3 births in US is delivered via C-section. While the complications of the surgery in both mom and baby including but not limited to infection and bleeding and hysterectomy in severe cases are known, the rate at which C section being performed rose by 50% as compared to mid-1990s, according to CDC (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).
Women with higher BMI (body mass index) have a greater risk of cesarean section according to Dr. Michelle Kominiarek, lead researcher who studied if obesity is related to risk for C-section.
Kominiarek’s team took data about 125,000 women who delivered between 2002 and 2008. The team analyzed all circumstances about the deliveries including the mode of delivery.
In all 14% underwent c-sections, and the researchers found that for one unit increase in the body mass index BMI, the risk for c-section rose by 4%.
They further found that in women, who had had their previous delivery via cesarean, the risk of having another c-section was just about double and over 50% in those women whose BMI was over 40.
