Caesareans increase risk for second baby

Women who undergo caesareans with a first baby are more at risk when they go on to have a second child.

Mothers who want to have their second child naturally are 50 times more likely to suffer a ruptured womb during childbirth if they have previously had a caesarean. This means that the lives of both mother and baby are threatened as about one in twenty babies will die from their mothers experiencing Uterine Rupture. The risks increases if the woman in over 35, or if she has to be induced with the second birth.

The figures, published in BJOG, an International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, came from a study of 300,000 Swedish women who gave birth between 1983 and 2001. The study found that almost a quarter of the women who were attempting a vaginal birth after a Caesarean (VBAC) required a second Caesarean. Older mothers over 35 were more likely to experience problems than those under 25. Those with a body mass index of over 30 (clinically obese) were more than twice as likely to experience uterine rupture than those who had a normal BMI (under 25).

Belinda Phipp, chief executive of the National Childbirth Trust, said: "The absolute risk of rupture is very small. We have to try very hard to get the first labour right. Then the problems don't arise."

There are about 120,000 Caesareans performed in NHS hospitals in England and Wales every year. There are no figures for how many women go on to try for a normal vaginal birth the second time round, but it has become more common in recent years.

Thanks to The Times, 03/10/07

Did you have a Caesarean the first time around and are worried about your next birth? Read all you need to know in our articles on Uterine rupture, Caesareans, how soon an I get pregnant again and VBACs. Have you gone on to have a successful VBAC? Visit our Chat forum to post a comment up, or ask or answer a question in our Answers area for more details on this subject.