Information on better childbearing is continuously arising—far too much information for pregnant women to reasonably stay abreast of. Soon-to-be moms should be able to lean on their obstetrician (whose profession’s name, after all, derives from the Latin obstare—to stand by) when it comes to making decisions about their pregnancy. However, mounting evidence of the significant risks Caesarean sections present, coupled with the dramatic increase in recent years in deliveries by C-section, suggests many obstetricians are not providing their patients with sound advice.
Case in point: A new study, conducted by a team of researchers from Johns Hopkins, Brown and Yale universities, has found that babies delivered by C-section because they weren’t growing properly in utero were 30 percent more likely to develop respiratory distress syndrome.
“If you’re in this situation, you should have a frank discussion with your doctor that maybe a vaginal delivery is equivalent, or even better,” Dr. Erika Werner, the study’s lead author and an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, told The New York Times.
One in three U.S. deliveries is now a C-section. In an effort to reduce this rate, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius last month announced a public-health campaign to encourage pregnant woman to deliver their baby vaginally, if possible, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recently issued new guidelines to decrease the incidence of repeat Caesareans.
Pregnant women need to be aware of the dangers of C-sections. Ultimately, though, the responsibility for keeping moms and babies safe falls to obstetricians. Have you or your baby been harmed as a result of an obstetrician’s negligence? Contact Hodes Milman for a free case evaluation. We’re aggressive personal injury and medical malpractice lawyers based in Orange County, serving all of California. We have the experience to take on the medical industry and have achieved multi-million dollar verdicts for our clients.
