Vaginal birth after cesarean in German out-of-hospital settings: maternal and neonatal outcomes of women with their second child.

BACKGROUND

To offer vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) in a hospital setting is recommended in international guidelines, but offering VBAC in out-of-hospital settings is considered controversial. This study describes neonatal and maternal outcomes in mothers who started labor in German out-of-hospital settings.

METHOD

In a retrospective analysis of German out-of-hospital data from 2005 to 2011, included were 24,545 parae II with a singleton pregnancy in a cephalic presentation at term (1,927 with a prior cesarean and 22,618 with a prior vaginal birth).

RESULT

The overall VBAC rate was 77.8 percent. The intrapartum transfer rate to hospital was 38.3 percent (prior cesarean) versus 4.6 percent (prior vaginal) (p < 0.05), and the 10-minute Apgar < 7 rate was 0.6 versus 0.2 percent (p < 0.05), and the nonemergency intrapartum transfer rate was 91.5 versus 85.0 percent (p < 0.05). Prolonged first stage of labor was the most common reason for intrapartum transfer in both groups. The leading reason for postpartum transfer was retained placenta.

DISCUSSION

There was a high rate of successful VBAC in this study. The high nonemergency transfer rate for women with VBAC might mean that midwives are more cautious when attending women with a prior cesarean in out-of-hospital settings. Further studies are necessary to evaluate which women are suitable for VBAC in out-of-hospital settings.