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Incidence of second‐stage (fully dilated) cesarean sections and how best to represent it: A multicenter analysis
Author(s) -
Rahim Asad,
Lock Gareth,
Cotzias Christina
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
international journal of gynecology and obstetrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.895
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1879-3479
pISSN - 0020-7292
DOI - 10.1002/ijgo.13672
Subject(s) - medicine , incidence (geometry) , stage (stratigraphy) , observational study , obstetrics , vaginal delivery , cesarean delivery , pregnancy , retrospective cohort study , third stage , vaginal birth , gynecology , surgery , paleontology , training (meteorology) , physics , genetics , pathology , meteorology , optics , biology
Objective To gather multicenter data on the incidence of second‐stage cesarean sections and suggest alternative methods by which the data can be represented. Methods Retrospective, observational study over a 12‐month study period. Numbers of term, singleton live births were collated from each of six maternity units. Data were separated by mode of delivery—unassisted vaginal birth, assisted (instrumental) vaginal delivery and elective, first‐stage, and second‐stage cesarean sections. Second‐stage cesarean sections were expressed as a proportion of all deliveries, of all laboring women (i.e. excluding elective cesarean sections), and all women who reach full dilatation (i.e. excluding elective and first‐stage cesarean sections). Results Of the 28 867 deliveries included in the analysis, 493 of these were second‐stage cesarean sections. This represented an incidence of 1.7% of all deliveries, 2.0% of all women in labor, and 2.5% of all women who reach full dilatation. Conclusion Second‐stage cesarean sections continue to be common. Safe delivery of a deeply impacted fetal vertex is essential in modern obstetric practice.