Cesarean section: frequency, decisive factors, maternal and perinatal consequences

Abstract

The present work discusses the high rate of surgical childbirths performed in the hospitals of Maringá – Paraná State, and the factors that influenced its accomplishment in the year of 1995. It characterizes the women's population that is being submitted to the abdominal childbirths and the most common complications in the puerperal period that result from such procedure. Using as source of data the system of information on live births and the hospital records, 2498 childbirths were studied. It was found a frequency of 79.8% of cesareans, 20.2% of vaginal deliveries and 0.4% deliveries accomplished with the forceps aid. The main clinical indications for the C-sections were for complicated labor, for fetal suffering and known or suspected cephalopelvic or fetuspelvic disproportion. The high incidence of cesareans and the larger proportion of surgical deliveries found in private patients with higher education that had the greatest number of prenatal consultations, and the fact that most of the C-sections were performed in the morning period point that non-technical reasons have been influencing in the high incidence of surgical childbirths. It was also found relationship between tubal ligation and surgical childbirths and inadequate use of antibiotic psychoprophylaxis. The most common intercurrence in the puerperal period was the postpartum hemorrhages and the infections. In the newborn, the most frequent intercurrence was the syndrome of the breathing discomfort.