According to a new study by Pompeu Fabra University, the time we go into labor could influence the fact that in the end our son ends up being born by caesarean section.
After studying the birth of 6,163 babies in four Spanish public hospitals, it has been concluded that, between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m., the probability of having an unscheduled caesarean section increases by 6.3 points and that could be due to the fatigue of doctors, which have to endure work shifts that are too long.
Working shifts too long
After comparing the data, collected between 2014 and 2016, the researchers concluded that, although mothers who give birth throughout the day have similar characteristics, Unscheduled C-sections increase at night.
According to the authors of the study, maternal-fetal health is not the only factor that influences when deciding on this intervention. The hospital shift structure (with 24-hour guards) Y the accumulated fatigue I could do that, in front of doubtful cases and that perhaps they would end up in a caesarean section later, the intervention is decided before, during these hours:
"Our results suggest that doctors may be less tolerant of the natural progression of the labor-intensive task. Time-related incentives are very important, and doctors are more likely to perform procedures that accelerate childbirth. Therefore, it would be necessary to review the incentives created by the structure of shifts and the long hours of work of doctors in public hospitals, in order to reduce preventable interventions. "
Apgar tests slightly lower
The study has also served to compare the results obtained by babies born by vaginal delivery compared to those of caesarean section in the Apgar Test: "Our research suggests that caesarean sections not medically indicated can have a negative and significant impact on the health of the newborn, as measured by Apgar test scores, but the effect is not serious enough to translate into more extreme results, "the authors state.
Children (healthy) born by caesarean section get on average one point less than those born vaginally in the Apgar Test, performed in minutes 1 and 5 after birth (with notes of 8.8 and 8.7 respectively). Between 7 and 10 points the baby is considered to be in good condition after birth.
Less caesarean sections, more savings
The study ends up offering data on significant economic savings which would mean reducing the number of preventable caesarean sections in public hospitals. If we take into account that the average cost of a caesarean section for the public health system is 1,692.97 euros higher than a vaginal delivery, by eliminating those avoidable caesarean sections, the hospitals in the sample could achieve a cost reduction of around 675,000 euros .
"These figures, applied to all the autonomous communities would suppose a saving of more than 47 million euros for the state public health system, a figure that, taking into account the average salary of a specialist doctor (45,970 euros) and the total number of public hospitals in Spain (453), would allow each hospital to hire more than two additional doctors. This fact would help, at the same time, to alleviate the need for long hours of work. "
And here they focus on the economy because the study has been carried out by a specialized research center on these issues, but reducing the rate of avoidable caesarean sections should be a priority because they have risks for both the mother and the baby and affect future pregnancies.
The objective should be to reduce the cesarean section rate to 10-15% of births, as recommended by the World Health Organization and that circumstances such as being born at night or the fatigue of doctors do not influence the birth of our child.
Via Pompeu Fabra University
In Babies and more More and more deliveries are induced and more C-sections are scheduled to prevent them from falling on the weekend, Only 1 in 10 women would have to give birth by caesarean
