Caesarean Section at a Selected Tertiary Hospital in Dhaka: Indications and Feto-Maternal Consequences

Background: Cesarean section (CS) delivery has substantially increased globally over the past few decades. Unnecessary C-sections can cause infections, excessive bleeding and various health complications for mothers and babies. In Bangladesh, more than 860,000 C-sections per year are medically unnecessary.

Objectives: To determine the indications along with fetal and maternal consequences of CS deliveries.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in paying wards in the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of a selected tertiary level hospital in Bangladesh. A sum of 306 patients were recruited to be a part of this study. Medical documents were used as sources of data and face-to-face interviews were conducted. Descriptive analysis was performed.

Results: Mean age was 26.35 ± 5.08 years; 58.5% were multiparous; mean duration of current pregnancy was 35.89 ± 4.23 weeks; 85% deliveries were performed by CS; indications revealed 26.3% cases for less fetal movement and 12.9% for history of previous caesarean section; 91.5% babies were live births; mean birth weight was 2.82 ± 0.53 kg, APGAR scoring at 5th minute was good for 95% fetuses; maternal condition during discharge was stable in 93.1% cases and mean length of hospital stay was 4.30 ± 1.83 days.

Conclusion: It can be suggested that the health authorities should formulate specialized programs and spread awareness about the ill effects of caesarean deliveries. The authorities should provide awareness to pregnant women on every comprehensive checkup about the pros and cons of C-section delivery and how to maintain good physical health throughout their pregnancy period.