Unnecessary cesarean delivery in Louisiana: an analysis of birth certificate data.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to explore the temporal trends and factors that are associated with cesarean deliveries and potentially unnecessary cesarean deliveries.

STUDY DESIGN

The Louisiana birth certificate database was evaluated to identify a total of 57 potential indications/risk factors and maternal demographic factors that are associated with methods of delivery over the period from January 1993 to December 2000. A cesarean delivery without any potential indications/risk factors in the birth certificate was classified as unnecessary.

RESULTS

The primary cesarean delivery rate decreased and the repeat cesarean delivery rate increased significantly during the study period. But neither the absence nor the presence of potential indications/risk factors accounted for these changes. The average potentially unnecessary primary and repeat cesarean deliveries in Louisiana were 17 and 43, respectively, per 100 cesarean deliveries over the years 1993 through 2000.

CONCLUSION

The proportions of potentially unnecessary cesarean deliveries are relatively high in Louisiana. It is important to explore the influence of nonclinical factors on unnecessary cesarean delivery to reduce the cesarean rates.