The Influence of the Mode of Delivery on the Respiratory Outcome of the Neonate

Abstract

To evaluate the prevalence of neonatal respiratory morbidity in term infants, especially babies delivered by elective Caesarean section, and to assess the influence of timing of elective Caesarean section on the respiratory outcome.
This was a cross sectional prospective study of all elective Caesarean sections on mothers with a gestational age of 37 weeks or more and vaginal deliveries, that were performed in Kirkuk general Hospital from 1 January 2015 to 31 June 2015.
Multiple pregnancies, fetuses with congenital anomalies, intrauterine deaths, and emergency Caesarean sections were excluded. The total number of infants delivered by elective cesarean section and vaginal delivery who were assessed for respiratory distress (RDS) and transient tachypnea of the newborn(TTN) were 6675.
Neonatal respiratory morbidity risk including RDS and TTN, were significantly higher in infant group delivered by elective caeserian delivery compared with vaginal delivery. The number of term neonates who were delivered by elective caeserian section and had respiratory morbidities was 20(2.1%) and for those delivered vaginally was35(0.61%) with a p. value of(0.032).
The combined respiratory morbidity and TTN of infants delivered by elective Caesarean section before 38 weeks of gestation was significantly increased.