Mortality pattern in babies delivered by cesarean section and vaginal delivery

A total of 7077 cases of delivery were studied in a rural based hospital where most of the mothers come without any antenatal care, from November, 1979 to December, 1980 to observe the mortality pattern in different types of delivery. Only live born babies were included in the study in which the mortality rate in elective cesarean section was found to be nearly equal to that in vaginal delivery. The percentage of mortality was higher (5.4%) in emergency cesarean section-the chief causes being asphyxia neonatorum, low gestational age and low birth weight.