Vaginal Deliveries Safer for Premature Babies

A latest study says that premature babies born through vaginal deliveries have comparatively lesser breathing problems than those born through cesarean section.

The researchers studied over 20,000 infants born in New York between 1995 and 2003. All the babies were born prematurely, between 24 and 34 weeks. (Full term babies reach 37 to 42 weeks). More than two-thirds of the babies were born vaginally.

The study authors noted  the age, race and medical conditions of the mothers. Dr . Erika Werner, the lead author of the study from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, and her colleagues found that babies delivered through C-section had more chances of developing respiratory problems. More than 39 percent of these babies had breathing problems, compared to 26 percent of newborns delivered vaginally.

"My suspicion is that the labor process, the contractions, that natural squeezing probably does something to clear out the lungs so that when babies are born they have a better breathing status," said Dr Werrner. She stressed on the fact that vaginal delivery should be carried out if it is safe.

According to the statistics revealed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly one in three births were through C-sections in 2010, which also lead to some health problems for mothers and the newborns. In 1996, the rate of babies born through cesarean was one in five.

Dr Werner said C-sections should only be performed when a woman is bleeding or a baby has a drop in heart-rate. However, she said there is no proper data on whether premature babies should be delivered through C-sections or vaginally.

The study found that the babies born through C-sections had problems in heart rate, reflexes and skin coloring within five minutes of their birth.

"I was struck by the fact that there does seem to be an increased risk of some things with C-section," Dr Werner said. However, "I don't know if you can make a definitive statement that it is higher risk to have a C-section based on this study."

According to Dr. Henry Lee, from the Stanford University School of Medicine's Division of Neonatal & Developmental Medicine, vaginal deliveries should be opted if there are no medical conditions. "When there is no clear maternal medical reason or indication for the baby's health (to do a C-section), then the vaginal route would be the preferred route of delivery," he said.