Vaginal delivery after cesarean section. Experience in private practice.

To test whether vaginal delivery after cesarean section (VDAC) is a safe alternative to repeated section, a retrospective chart review of 2,350 deliveries during a ten-year period in a private practice group committed to VDAC was studied. Eighty-five parturients met six predetermined safety criteria and were permitted a trial of labor. These criteria were (1) prior low-segment transverse uterine incision; (2) vertex presentation; (3) carefully monitored labor with obstetrician present; (4) availability of emergency facilities; (5) no administration of oxytocin; and (6) patients' consent and desire to pursue VDAC. Seventy-six labors (89%) managed expectantly were successful in VDAC. No maternal or fetal morbidity was detected. No uterine ruptures were detected on postpartum examination or at the time of cesarean section. These results support the 1980 report of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development recommending that labor and VDAC are of low risk to mother and fetus in properly selected cases.