Cesarean section: requested mode of delivery?

To constitute accurate policies for reducing the cesarean section (C/S) the authors evaluated the attitudes and knowledge of health workers and public population towards the mode of delivery, C/S on demand, and delivery complications in a large population.

1,892 female volunteers in reproductive age were enrolled in the study and 589 of them were health workers. Patients were evaluated with questionnaire about their delivery mode and their answers were analyzed.

The overall cesarean rate of the study population was 45.4%. This rate were 51.4% and 28.2%, respectively, for the health workers and public group (p < 0.001). Medical indication ratio ivere 57.7% and 40.1% for the healthcare group and the public population respectively and 20.2% of health workers and 13.9% of the public group had C/S by their preference without any medical indications (p < 0.001).

C/S rate is high in Turkey and an action plan is needed to decrease the rate. When a patient's preference towards the mode of the delivery is C/S on demand, obstetricians, in their capacity as patient advocate, should help guide their patient through the sophisticated detailed medical information toward a decision that respects both the patient's attitude and the physician's obligation to optimize the health of both the mother and the newborn.