Factors influencing the practice of vaginal birth after cesarean section.

OBJECTIVES

Vaginal birth after cesarean has been recommended for most women with previous cesarean sections for the past 10 years. This practice, however, has not yet been generalized because high variations can still be observed among countries, hospitals, and physicians.

METHODS

A case-control study involving 635 case patients and 2593 control patients was carried out to determine which characteristics of the physician, the patient, or the hospital were important in the adoption of this practice.

RESULTS

The results of the multiple stepwise logistic regression analysis indicate a higher likelihood that women will experience vaginal birth after cesarean if their physicians had cesarean rates under 20%, had less than 5% of their patients considered at risk, and were younger than 54 years old. Vaginal birth after cesarean was also favored by hospitals characterized by a high degree of neonatal and obstetrical specialization, and a patient population with a low level of education.

CONCLUSIONS

This policy is still in the developmental stage, as evidenced by the great variability between hospitals and physicians in rates of vaginal birth after cesarean. Further efforts are required for this policy to become the norm.